Around the League Thread - Playoff Edition

[BB06]

Blues or Canucks likely playing Vegas.

Reminds me of 2015 when either the Flames and Canucks were duking it out to get destroyed by Anaheim in round 2.

Blues are the defending Stanley cup champions....

 

[SeawaterOnIce]

Blues are the defending Stanley cup champions....

Looking at this year...No one is touching Vegas.

 

[Mr. Canucklehead]

Looking at this year...No one is touching Vegas.

IMO - Vegas wins the Cup last year if not for the botch job the refs performed in the VEG/SJ series.

 

[Hit the post]

IMO - Vegas wins the Cup last year if not for the botch job the refs performed in the VEG/SJ series.

Funny how SJ rarely if ever gets screwed by the refs (maybe the odd call but nothing like that series or in our series with the Sharks way back).

 

[VanillaCoke]

IMO - Vegas wins the Cup last year if not for the botch job the refs performed in the VEG/SJ series.

Probably a safe bet. Finals first year, likely would've the next, and likely this year.
Pretty good start.

 

[sandwichbird2023]

Looking at this year...No one is touching Vegas.

I don't know, Avs look pretty dominant too, and you can never count out the defending champs.

 

[VanJack]

Despite all the heat, light and rhetoric about potential upsets, the first round of these Stanley Cup playoffs are a totally different animal than the play-in series. They're boring, and pretty predictable. The only real upset is the Caps being down 1-3 to Barry Trotz's Islanders. But Boston over Carolina; and the Flyers over the Habs; and the Bolts over the plucky Jackets; weren't hard predictions at all.

And out West, Dallas, St. Louis, Colorado and Vegas look set to advance.....which is the way you'd have handicapped it at the beginning.

It really underscores the massive gulf that exists between the top teams in West and East, and the flotsam and jetsam of the 'play-in series' teams, which includes the Canucks imo.

Without Hughes and Pettersson; and unless Markstom plays out of his mind, the Canucks probably aren't even a 'play in series' team. More likely they're languishing with the likes of Buffalo, San Jose, L.A. and Ottawa.

 

[BenningHurtsMySoul]

Vegas would absolutely curbstomp us.

 

[datboichoi]

IMO - Vegas wins the Cup last year if not for the botch job the refs performed in the VEG/SJ series.

To be fair San Jose probably also wins the cup if Karlsson, Hertl and Pavelski get sidelined with injuries.

 

[Fire Benning]

Doozie of a game between the Bolts and BJs today

 

[Blue and Green]

Columbus finally outplayed Tampa but a lucky bounce off of Cirelli's skate tied it late and now Tampa has won the game (and series) in OT.

 

[Fire Benning]

I think Tampa will go on a serious run, they're on a mission

 

[VanillaCoke]

That was a good game, feel bad for Columbus they put up a good fight, but Tampa was clearly too strong.

 

[Billy Kvcmu]

Talents on each side were simply too lopsided

 

[Fire Benning]

Amazing that Point fell to the 3rd round

 

[BB06]

Fleury has performed pretty well these playoffs. Gives me hope for OJ.

 

[Catamarca Livin]

Despite all the heat, light and rhetoric about potential upsets, the first round of these Stanley Cup playoffs are a totally different animal than the play-in series. They're boring, and pretty predictable. The only real upset is the Caps being down 1-3 to Barry Trotz's Islanders. But Boston over Carolina; and the Flyers over the Habs; and the Bolts over the plucky Jackets; weren't hard predictions at all.

And out West, Dallas, St. Louis, Colorado and Vegas look set to advance.....which is the way you'd have handicapped it at the beginning.

It really underscores the massive gulf that exists between the top teams in West and East, and the flotsam and jetsam of the 'play-in series' teams, which includes the Canucks imo.

Without Hughes and Pettersson; and unless Markstom plays out of his mind, the Canucks probably aren't even a 'play in series' team. More likely they're languishing with the likes of Buffalo, San Jose, L.A. and Ottawa.

Yes, without Hughes, Petterson and Marky playing well the Canucks are a poor team. Actually that was exactly our 2017-2018 team with Boeser and the twins that resulted in team being at bottom of league and getting Hughes 7th overall. In fairness where is Colorado without McKinnon, Makar, and another top player. When you take any three players off any team they become much worst.

 

[VanJack]

Yes, without Hughes, Petterson and Marky playing well the Canucks are a poor team. Actually that was exactly our 2017-2018 team with Boeser and the twins that resulted in team being at bottom of league and getting Hughes 7th overall. In fairness where is Colorado without McKinnon, Makar, and another top player. When you take any three players off any team they become much worst.

True....but when the season was put on hold, the Canucks were very much a playoff bubble team and were trending in the wrong direction. There's absolutely no guarantee they'd have made it. And that was with Hughes and Pettersson in the lineup, although Markstrom was hurt.

But any time a team is relying on two kids 20 and 21 to carry a team on their backs, it's just too big a task. The rest of the roster is either aging out, or not good enough. In fact, it's a 'lottery team lineup' pure and simple. And that's after six years of the Benning regime.

 

[SeawaterOnIce]

Boston vs Tampa.
Philly vs New York Islanders.

Hoping for an Islanders vs Lightning ECF.

 

[xtra]

While I think this whole playoff get up is more akin to a Canada cup/world cup than actual Stanley cup playoff an Vegas vs. Tampa final would be some good hockey.

 

[BB06]

f*** Boston

 

[CanuckleBerry]

Nathan Mackinnon is the complete package. Watching him rag doll that Coyotes’ player was a sight to see.

Even better sight once you picture Brad Marchand as the one being rag dolled. As much as I hate them, the Bruins are good and likely to come out of the East. I truly hope that Vegas has what it takes to crunch them in to submission.

 

[VanillaCoke]

Boston is not getting by Tampa. Going from mrazek trash to Vasi is going to be a big difference on its own.
Not even considering the top 9 in TB is much better than Boston or Carolina

 

[vanarchy]

Looking at this year...No one is touching Vegas.

People say stuff like this literally every year. Usually about Tampa or Boston.

The reality is, any team can get eliminated.

 

[Burke's Evil Spirit]

What is going on with Stamkos? Is it weird blood stuff again?