Pre-Game Talk: 24 Team Playoffs discussion

[Pierce Hawthorne]

Since we've unofficially, officially got hockey coming back soon, I figure lets get a thread going to discuss what will be an unprecedented, crazy summer that the NHL will have never seen before.


The 24 team format has been agreed upon by both sides. Some things aren't completely hashed out yet, but it sounds like the Top 4 teams in each division will be getting a 1st round bye. How exactly they seed the 2nd round opponents, or what will happen during the "play-in" round for the Top seeded teams remains unknown.


But hockey is coming back. Avs will have a healthy lineup pretty much for the first time all year long, and will have a chance to win the cup this summer.


When we were the closest we had gotten to being healthy this year(The start of the season) we were 8-0-1. Also a similar time of the year in which team chemistry wont be the same as it is after a full 82 game season and a lot of guys are fairly rusty.


I think the Avs will have a really good opportunity to win it all. Healthy, rested, young, and motivated to win. A solid recipe for a special summer for this team.

Click to read more...

 

[Ceremony]

Is Colin Wilson still deceased?

 

[HugeMetalFan]

...the Top 4 teams in each conference will be getting a 1st round bye. ...

I'm excited but personally I'm not really expecting anything. Playoffs are quite unpredictable in a regular year, this year with all the conditions (no real home ice, all teams well rested but rusty, expanded playoffs...) I think we'll see even more upsets. But it beats losing the season.

 

[Northern Avs Fan]

Went with Chicago.

Certainly a rested Kane and Toews is a concern, but overall I think their defence matches up really poorly with the Avs offensive attack.

 

[Balthazar]

Canucks because they are a lesser version of the Avs. Hard to have a better matchup style-wise.

 

[JLo217]

Went with Chicago.

Certainly a rested Kane and Toews is a concern, but overall I think their defence matches up really poorly with the Avs offensive attack.

Gotta watch out for the best player in the world Jonathan Toews....

 

[Northern Avs Fan]

Gotta watch out for the best player in the world Jonathan Toews....

Haha love me some Jonathan Toews, but the defence on that team would get exposed against the Avs.

 

[Cousin Eddie]

Vancouver for entertainment.

If I were to pick the “easiest” opponent i would probably choose Calgary. Despite a decent record I think they’re a walk in the park for the Avs based on how they matchup.

 

[Avs9296]

I think this break will help Rantanen out the most. High ankle sprains are tricky injuries where you can come back from relatively soon but to actually feel strong and 100% on it takes months and months. Hopefully now the ankle should be 100% or close to it.

 

[Pierce Hawthorne]

I like Chicago a lot as a matchup. Especially now that they are also without Lehner and have to rely solely on Crawford.


I dont think they get through Edmonton unfortunately, as Edmonton matches up with them quite well also. But if Kane/Toews can steal a play in matchup with the Oilers I would love to get them.


I also like Vancouver. They're basically just a weaker version of us, that would also be a really fun series to watch and the media buzz around it would be pretty big. Makar vs Hughes would add a new dynamic to it. They really are just the Avs but weaker pretty much. Pettersson/Mack, Rantanen/Boeser, Landy/Miller, Makar/Hughes, Kadri/Horvat, Toffoli/Burakovsky.... A tonne of similar pieces, with the Avs simply having the better player in pretty much all comparisons aside from maybe Hughes/Makar and Naz/Horvat. And then the defensive depth the Avs run away with.


In terms of a matchup I dont want to see... Arizona would be scary. They are a team that really can overwhelm you defensively, and if playoff Kessel shows up, they have the offensive power to win a lot of 2-1 or 3-2 type of games. They also have stellar goaltending from Kuemper who is one of the very few goalies in the playoffs that could truly "Steal" a series.

Minnesota wouldn't be ideal either. Just because they have a lot of guys still on that team from 2014 when they took us out as the 8th seed, and I'm sure those guys would love the chance to upset us again. Even though they're a weaker team then us on paper, they played pretty well all year after a poor start and played us fairly well during the season as well. In saying that... if they went with Dubnyk in the playoffs over Stallock it would be a very quick series.



At the end of the day I dont care who we get, so long as we get to see the playoffs. I think whatever team wins will have absolutely deserved the cup and will have went through a pretty grueling summer to win... I dont think anything should be taken away from the eventual cup winners at all, it will be very hard fought and deserved. But on the flip side, I dont think you can really draw too many conclusions from teams that dont win it either. Like Tampa or us, or Boston... some of the favorites. If they dont win I dont think you can necessarily chop it up as a failed season, just because of how bizarre this playoff is going to be. A lot of different factors are going to come into play here.

 

[Iracundia]

I want to crush the playoff dreams of teams that did it to us

R1 Wild
R2 Preds

 

[McMetal]

Went with Edmonton. Our depth would absolutely shred them in a seven game series even if McDrai manage to steal a game or two. The only teams that really make me hesitate in that group are Vancouver and Arizona.

By ranking:

1) Edmonton - Paper Tiger
2) Chicago - Easy defensive matchup
3) Nashville - Shadow of the team that beat us two years ago
4) Minnesota - Bad team, but disciplined
5) Calgary - We can beat them again, but they won't go quietly
6) Winnipeg - Playoff veterans with lots of dangerous forward depth and good goaltending
7) Vancouver - Game breaking talent up front and on the blue line
8) Arizona - Kuemper has been amazing and he alone could steal a series

 

[Ararana]

Voted Chicago because, like Pierce said, without Lehner I think we'd probably come close to sweeping them. If Sakic and Bednar had the stones to put Byram in while we did it, my erection would never go away. But between their defense and Crawford in net I don't think there's a chance in hell they manage to stop McDavid and Drai.

As for satisfaction, curb stomping the Wild or Makar running over Hughes would probably be the most enjoyable. I feel nothing towards Nashville, their time is done and I have no hard feeling for them beating us in the postseason like they should have. At least they didn't Matt Cooke us to do it.

 

[Northern Avs Fan]

Teams that concern me the most in the West.

Blues: Experienced, well rounded, and deep. Pietrangelo and Parayko are going to be well rested and playing 25+ minutes a night. Oh, and Tarasenko is back.

Winnipeg: As much talent up front as Colorado and better goaltending. Not overly reliant on their power play.

Vegas: Just solid all around. They can come at you in waves. Not a lot of star power, but they have so many steady guys throughout their lineup.

 

[Balthazar]

Teams that concern me the most in the West.

Blues: Experienced, well rounded, and deep. Pietrangelo and Parayko are going to be well rested and playing 25+ minutes a night. Oh, and Tarasenko is back.

Winnipeg: As much talent up front as Colorado and better goaltending. Not overly reliant on their power play.

Vegas: Just solid all around. They can come at you in waves. Not a lot of star power, but they have so many steady guys throughout their lineup.

Stars are the anti-Avs and are very dangerous to us. I'd rather face Winnipeg or Vegas than them.

 

[Northern Avs Fan]

Stars are the anti-Avs and are very dangerous to us. I'd rather face Winnipeg or Vegas than them.

They would be in the next tier for me. Still tough, just not as dangerous as the other teams.

It’s certainly possible the break helps veterans like Benn, Pavelski, Radulov, Seguin, and Perry. But, that team had a brutal offence this year.

 

[Ararana]

It takes time for goalies to get into their rhythm at the start of a new season and after a long break and jumping straight into the postseason I think the teams who will be impacted the most by that are Dallas and Vancouver who rely heavily on their goalies. I mean just look at Dallas' start to the season this year.

It’s certainly possible the break helps veterans like Benn, Pavelski, Radulov, Seguin, and Perry. But, that team had a brutal offence this year.

They'll be rested sure, everyone will be, but I do wonder about younger players vs older players jumping straight into playoff games like this. I honestly don't know what to expect with that. My initial thought is the older guys would be a step behind trying to ramp themselves up, but who knows. Three games is not much of a training camp to jump straight into playoff intensity.

 

[Northern Avs Fan]

It takes time for goalies to get into their rhythm at the start of a new season and after a long break and jumping straight into the postseason I think the teams who will be impacted the most by that are Dallas and Vancouver who rely heavily on their goalies. I mean just look at Dallas' start to the season this year.



They'll be rested sure, everyone will be, but I do wonder about younger players vs older players jumping straight into playoff games like this. I honestly don't know what to expect with that. My initial thought is the older guys would be a step behind trying to ramp themselves up, but who knows. Three games is not much of a training camp to jump straight into playoff intensity.

It’s so hard to know who’s going to thrive under these bizarre circumstances.

On another note...

I’ve been thinking about our lineup for the post season, what would you think about putting together a little different top-6? More of a defensive second line.

Donskoi - MacKinnon - Rantanen
Landeskog - Kadri - Nichushkin
Namestnikov - Compher - Burky
Calvert - Bellemare - Jost

 

[MarkT]

It’s so hard to know who’s going to thrive under these bizarre circumstances.

On another note...

I’ve been thinking about our lineup for the post season, what would you think about putting together a little different top-6? More of a defensive second line.

Donskoi - MacKinnon - Rantanen
Landeskog - Kadri - Nichushkin
Namestnikov - Compher - Burky
Calvert - Bellemare - Jost

I totally agree with your first point. Nobody has any idea which teams will be hot right off the bat. All I care about is that they go with the format that gives the Avs a few warmup games before the playoffs really start. I don't like the Avs' shot against any team that just won a 5 game series if the Avs are going in stone cold.

As for the lines, I think you load up:

Landeskog - MacKinnon - Rantanen
Namestnikov - Kadri - Burakovsky
Nichushkin - Compher - Donskoi
Calvert - Bellemare - Nieto/Wilson*
*if alive

Lets the boys roll and see if any team is able to match up. I doubt it.

 

[Northern Avs Fan]

I totally agree with your first point. Nobody has any idea which teams will be hot right off the bat. All I care about is that they go with the format that gives the Avs a few warmup games before the playoffs really start. I don't like the Avs' shot against any team that just won a 5 game series if the Avs are going in stone cold.

As for the lines, I think you load up:

Landeskog - MacKinnon - Rantanen
Namestnikov - Kadri - Burakovsky
Nichushkin - Compher - Donskoi
Calvert - Bellemare - Nieto/Wilson*
*if alive

Lets the boys roll and see if any team is able to match up. I doubt it.

It probably makes more sense to keep the big line together for chemistry purposes.

I’m sure Bednar is already thinking about who he wants in his bottom six.

There are so many options and it might depend on who the Avs match up against. Wilson brings some added size and punch to the second power play unit. Nieto of course has the speed and Jost was playing well the last ten games before the break.

 

[AvsFan29]

I kinda hope we play Vancouver for the Makar v Hughes nonsense to finally be resolved. I think we will make Hughes look pretty bad, and Makar will shine. Minnesota is the easiest match up, although we blew Chicago out a few times this year.

 

[MarkT]

It probably makes more sense to keep the big line together for chemistry purposes.

I’m sure Bednar is already thinking about who he wants in his bottom six.

There are so many options and it might depend on who the Avs match up against. Wilson brings some added size and punch to the second power play unit. Nieto of course has the speed and Jost was playing well the last ten games before the break.

One of the things I'm so excited about is assuming everyone is healthy, not only are there no bad choices for the lineup, but when injuries hit, we can still go at least two deep (and more if you include guys like Kaut) before our lineup begins to suffer in the least.

As for that 4th line spot, I'd go with Wilson just because I remember playoff Wilson from last year and how good he was. Jost was also great in the playoffs last year, but that was as a center, so unless we get a center injury I'd go with Wilson or Nieto over him.

 

[The Kingslayer]

Teams that concern me the most in the West.

Blues: Experienced, well rounded, and deep. Pietrangelo and Parayko are going to be well rested and playing 25+ minutes a night. Oh, and Tarasenko is back.

Winnipeg: As much talent up front as Colorado and better goaltending. Not overly reliant on their power play.

Vegas: Just solid all around. They can come at you in waves. Not a lot of star power, but they have so many steady guys throughout their lineup.

To be honest only the Blues and Vegas concern me. Ill even go so far as to say the Blues are the only team that concerns me.

 

[The Kingslayer]

I kinda hope we play Vancouver for the Makar v Hughes nonsense to finally be resolved. I think we will make Hughes look pretty bad, and Makar will shine. Minnesota is the easiest match up, although we blew Chicago out a few times this year.

That argument will go on for a long time I think. Hopefully it ends up well for us like Hodgson vs Duchene did.

 

[McMetal]

Wilson was really effective in last year's playoffs, but I think Nieto's ability to kill penalties keeps him in the lineup. Wilson's a little one dimensional and we don't need to rely on him for secondary scoring punch nearly as much as we did last year.

I still put both of them in before Jost though. I don't buy that late season surge one bit.