ATD2010 Jim Robson Semi-Final: Halifax Mooseheads (1) vs. Springfield Indians (5)

[VanIslander]

The Jim Robson Division Semi-Final Round:


Halifax Mooseheads

coach Jacques Demers

Sweeney Schriner - Frank Boucher - Rick Middleton
Rick Martin - Henri Richard (C) - Hooley Smith (A)
Ryan Walter - Dave Poulin - Mike Foligno
Yvon Lambert - Red Sullivan - Terry O'Reilly
Rejean Houle, Bronco Horvath

Fern Flaman (A) - Bobby Orr
Vladimir Konstantinov - Gus Mortson
Jiri Bubla - Dave Langevin
Weldy Young

Tony Esposito
Vladimir Dzurilla


vs.


Springfield Indians

coach Harry Sinden

Wayne Cashman - Eric Lindros - Tim Kerr
Baldy Northcott - Darryl Sittler (A) - Gordie Drillon
Ross Lonsberry - Mike Peca - Jerry Toppazzini
Dick Duff - Russel Bowie - Paul Henderson
Eric Staal, Bob Probert

Eddie Shore (A) - Terry Harper
Denis Potvin (C) - Dallas Smith
Doug Barkley - Reed Larson
Oldrich Machac

Gerry Cheevers
Hugh Lehman

​

Click to read more...

 

[VanIslander]

Halifax Mooseheads

PP1: Schriner-Boucher-Smith-Orr-Mortson
PP2: Martin-Richard-Middleton-Orr-Bubla

PK1: Poulin-Middleton-Orr-Flaman
PK2: Richard-Smith-Konstantinov-Mortson

vs.

Springfield Indians

PP 1: Duff-Kerr-Lindros-Potvin-Shore
PP 2: Northcott-Sittler-Drillon-Bowie-Larson

PK 1: Lonsberry-Peca-Potvin-Shore
PK 2: Northcott-Toppazzini-Smith-Harper

 

[Stoneberg]

Time to deal with Shore and Potvin, should be fun. Might be able to start commenting some time tomorrow.

Good luck raleh.

 

[Leafs Forever]

Arguably the two greatest defencemen ever going head to head, and another top-7 defencemen here too...I feel sorry for Springfield that keeps drawing other teams that are also great on defense.

 

[Stoneberg]

Just a note, Foligno will be back in the lineup (as indicated in the first post) for this series, replacing Houle. Mainly for size and boardwork to make the Springfield defensemen work a little bit more in the corners, and maybe a bit more of an ability to chip in offensively than Houle.

 

[TheDevilMadeMe]

Orr, Shore, and Potvin in the same series?

Has the ATD ever seen such talent at the blueline in the same series before?

 

[raleh]

This is brutal; first I have to play the one team with almost as good of a one-two punch as me, then I have to play one of two teams that have a better #1 than me. Just terrible.

But good luck Stallberg, I really like your team.

Anyways, I'll have more to say later, but for now it's all about how to limit Orr's damage. I think the Flyers got it right; we're going to throw the puck into Orr's corner, not try to keep it away from him. Then we're going to make his life hell. Cashman, Northcott, Lonsberry, or Peca are going to follow him into the corner every time we come into the Halifax zone. The intention is not to get the puck away from him, but to cripple him. As cheap as it is, I think that's the only shot we have at winning this series.

Potvin (who was never a huge Orr fan and will be out with something to prove) and Shore will be instructed to hit low when Orr is carrying the puck, and they're two of very few who have a shot at catching him.

I don't like this at all; I think that Orr is the best player ever and by far the hardest to stop. Even if I had a Bob Gainey - Bobby Clarke - Claude Provost line, I don't think we could contain him. I actually think the only way to stop him is to get the knee. He's hockey's Achilles, so we've gotta be a little dirty.

And this team was built to win dirty games.
That being said, I am well aware of the damage Flaman could inflict on Kerr or Lindros in this series and that we'll be taking some lumps too.

There is a very, very small chance that Henderson doesn't dress for this series and Probert is inserted into the lineup. But I'm not sure on that, yet.

 

[Stoneberg]

So that's how it's going to be, eh?

Just a couple of notes for now, as I'm at work.

Re: Attacking Orr

This won't the the first time that Bobby has been targeted, but it seems like it's going to be to the extent where I should address it. Well for starters, I guess Flaman will need to be instructed to re-arrange the face of anyone who he feels attempted to take liberties on #4. Mortson has no qualms with outright attacking someone based on his history, so if we need to make it an eye for an eye I like his chances of jumping either Shore or Potvin and hopefully doing something dirty enough to end their series(this is assuming Flaman is already sitting in the box with bloody knuckles).

I also fully expect Bobby to be able to exploit over-aggressive forechecking. Especially with our high flying Richard line, the counter attack will be another issue for Springfield. Yes, throwing it in his corner gives you more chances to hit him, but it also gives our best player the chance to pick apart the forecheck and make a play.

As lame as it may sound, we will have to rely on the refs competence as a deterrant to the dirty play as well. Not based on the fact that penalties will be called on blatant attempts to attack our star player, but the fact that our potent powerplay should be able to do a fair share of damage on the PP (especially if one of Shore or Potvin are in the box).

Of course if the Mooseheads get out ahead enough (2-3 goals depending on the time remaining in the game), Bobby will be riding pine to avoid the chances someone catches him.

I'll probably come up with some more regarding this issue, with more time to think later on.

 

[Stoneberg]

This is more for my own benefit, but I figure if I'm looking it up I may as well post it.

Again, I'm just going to do a basic head to head comparison of the top six purely on production, as I realize that there are a lot of players in both lineups that bring good defensive ability and intangibles as well. Keep in mind scoring accross varying eras makes it impossible to use these numbers in direct comparison.

Assists Top 5's, 10's. --- Goal Scoring Top 5's, 10's (top 5's excluded from top 10 numbers)

Wayne Cashman (2,0)---(0,0)
Sweeney Schriner(3,0)---(4,1)

Eric Lindros (1,2)---(0,4) (If we went per game on both: (2,4)---(2,6))
Frank Boucher (8,1)---(1,1) (7 times 1st or 2nd in assists)

Tim Kerr (0,0)---(3,2)
Rick Middleton (0,0)---(0,3)

Baldy Northcot (0,2)---(1,2)
Rick Martin (0,0)---(2,3)

Darryl Sittler (1,1)---(0,3)
Henri Richard (3,4)---(1,1) (Led the league in assists twice)

Gordie Drillon (1,1)---(5,1) (Led the league in goals once)
Hooley Smith (3,4)---(1,3)

Total Goal Scoring Top 5's Springfield: 9
Total Goal Scoring Top 5's Halifax: 9

Total Goal Scoring Top 10's* Springfield: 12
Total Goal Scoring Top 10's* Halifax: 12

Total Assists Top 5's Springfield: 5
Total Assists Top 5's Halifax: 17

Total Assists Top 10's* Springfield: 6
Total Assist Top 10's* Halifax: 9

*Again, excluding top 5's

The most productive of the rest in no specific order(just in terms of NHL top 10's too):

Duff (0,0)---(0,2)
Bowie - Split league, can't look up numbers from work very quickly
Sullivan (0,3)---(0,0)
Henderson (0,0)---(0,1)
O'Reilly (0,1)---(0,0)

Weapons from the blueline:

Mr. Orr (6,0)---(0,3) (Led the league in assists 5 times)
Shore (2,1)---(0,0)
Potvin (2,2)---(0,0)

I added it all up quickly in my head, so if I'm off somewhere, let me know. I can also fill in details on Bowie when provided.

 

[raleh]

This is more for my own benefit, but I figure if I'm looking it up I may as well post it.

Again, I'm just going to do a basic head to head comparison of the top six purely on production, as I realize that there are a lot of players in both lineups that bring good defensive ability and intangibles as well. Keep in mind scoring accross varying eras makes it impossible to use these numbers in direct comparison.

Assists Top 5's, 10's. --- Goal Scoring Top 5's, 10's (top 5's excluded from top 10 numbers)

Wayne Cashman (2,0)---(0,0)
Sweeney Schriner(3,0)---(4,1)

Eric Lindros (1,2)---(0,4) (If we went per game on both: (2,4)---(2,6))
Frank Boucher (8,1)---(1,1) (7 times 1st or 2nd in assists)

Tim Kerr (0,0)---(3,2)
Rick Middleton (0,0)---(0,3)

Baldy Northcot (0,2)---(1,2)
Rick Martin (0,0)---(2,3)

Darryl Sittler (1,1)---(0,3)
Henri Richard (3,4)---(1,1) (Led the league in assists twice)

Gordie Drillon (1,1)---(5,1) (Led the league in goals once)
Hooley Smith (3,4)---(1,3)

Total Goal Scoring Top 5's Springfield: 9
Total Goal Scoring Top 5's Halifax: 9

Total Goal Scoring Top 10's* Springfield: 12
Total Goal Scoring Top 10's* Halifax: 12

Total Assists Top 5's Springfield: 5
Total Assists Top 5's Halifax: 17

Total Assists Top 10's* Springfield: 6
Total Assist Top 10's* Halifax: 9

*Again, excluding top 5's

The most productive of the rest in no specific order(just in terms of NHL top 10's too):

Duff (0,0)---(0,2)
Bowie - Split league, can't look up numbers from work very quickly
Sullivan (0,3)---(0,0)
Henderson (0,0)---(0,1)
O'Reilly (0,1)---(0,0)

Weapons from the blueline:

Mr. Orr (6,0)---(0,3) (Led the league in assists 5 times)
Shore (2,1)---(0,0)
Potvin (2,2)---(0,0)

I added it all up quickly in my head, so if I'm off somewhere, let me know. I can also fill in details on Bowie when provided.

Thanks for doing that, man.

**** Orr was good...

 

[TheDevilMadeMe]

If this series turns as dirty as it sounds like it will, special teams could have a huge effect.

A comparison of special teams could be crucial to determine the outcome.

It also raises another interesting question - Does Halifax have the toughness to protect Orr?

 

[raleh]

If this series turns as dirty as it sounds like it will, special teams could have a huge effect.

A comparison of special teams could be crucial to determine the outcome.

It also raises another interesting question - Does Halifax have the toughness to protect Orr?

I think a lot depends on who is in the box, and if Orr just turns around and scores on the PP. And then beats the **** out of whoever went running at him.

This is the sort of team that I build, especially without GBC. So in order to make it work, you've gotta be able to kill penalties. Starting from the goal and moving out; one of the benefits of having Bernie Parent is that his teams faced more power plays than any other team, so we know how good he could be at killing penalties. I don't have stats in front of me, but I would wager a guess that Cheevers, of the Big Bad Bruins era, would be a (likely very distant) second. At least over a two or three year period. You're goaltender is supposed to be your best penalty killer and Cheevers did it a LOT. I'm not going to try to convince anyone that he is better than he is, but this is one area in which he excels (as much as he can excel in an ATD).

The pairing on the top PK unit is Shore and Potvin. I'm not sure how much I need to talk about them; I would say Shore is a top 5ish PK dman in this thing with Potvin also in the top 10. Are either of them Orr? Of course not, and there is a decent chance it's one of them in the box so their effectiveness goes down. But, if it takes Shore sitting for 2-60 minutes to neuter Orr, we'll take it. Although Shore and Potvin are both primarily offensive dmen, they're both all around great players who are top 20 players of all time. I think I can say with a fair amount of certainty that I have the best top PK pairing in the draft. Probably the second best I can remember (after Orr-Savard).

On the second unit, is it fair to say that Terry Harper is hovering very close to the top 20 as far as PK dmen go? I think it's close. He was on the ice for over 50% of PPGA in his career, same as Potvin. Dallas Smith is, I would say, an average second pairing guy who also saw a lot of PK time in his career (OTI for 49% of PPGA).

The forwards on the top unit are Mike Peca and Ross Lonsberry. Peca was one of the strongest PK guys in recent memory. Lonsberry wasn't the main PK guy on those Flyers, but they did happen to have the best defensive forward of all time on their team. Lonsberry was known as a two way player who could work the boards and had excellent checking skills. There's something in his LOH bio that says something about how Lonsberry typified the Broad Street Bullies' style. His aggressive checking will likely fit nicely with Peca, Shore, and Potvin.

The second unit is a little different. Toppazzini and Northcott are both natural wingers, so winning faceoffs might be an issue; but I just like their ability to be a short handed threat. With Orr playing the whole PP, and ideally being worn out from the pounding he'll be taking, I really like having two guys that can turn it around and go the other way. Toppazzini at one point held the NHL record for most short handed goals in a season and Northcott's scoring resume (two top tens in assists, two top tens in goals, and a top five) is good enough that they're both dangerous. Northcott's defensive abilities are adequate for second PK duty, he spent some time playing defense and was an adept checker. Topper's record for most short handed goals tells me that he was killing a lot of penalties; that's a record you don't get by just playing spot duty on a PK unit. Granted, their second PK unit has Henri Richard, so short handed goals are going to be tougher to come by than it most other series.

 

[Stoneberg]

He's the toughest defenseman I ever played against

Any other player I do not worry about. But when I go near that fellow, believe me I look over my shoulder

Though known as the toughest defenseman in the league, Flaman did not necessarily want that advertised.

After establishing himself as a feared enforcer, thanks largely to memorable battles with the Leafs' Bill Eznicki and Gus Mortson, Flaman never went looking for a fight, though he found more than a few anyways. He was always the first player to arrive on the scene should one of his teammates find themselves in any sort of peril.

So this is the guy that will be on the ice with Orr for pretty much every ES and SH shift all game.

Gus Mortson was once one of the baddest men in hockey

Twice he was punished with lengthy suspensions for deliberately trying to injure another player.

...Thompson the stay-at-home defender and Mortson the flashier, whirling rusher who had a nose for trouble and abrasive play....

That's the guy who will be playing the first unit on the PP with Orr, or with him when Flaman is in the box. It mentions above that Flaman had at least one memorable battle with Mortson, which leads me to the conclusion that he was very likely a legit heavyweight at the time as well, especially after factoring in his penalty minutes.

...A cocky player with a nasty streak...

He had great speed and a temper with a short fuse

In his final game with the Senators, Smith attacked Harry Oliver of the Bruins in the 1927 Stanley Cup finals. A bloody brawl ensued.

Incensed with Bruins forward Harry Oliver, Smith attacked his opponent and laid on a beating so severe that NHL president Frank Calder leveled a one-month suspension effective at the start of the next season.

Smith was also considered a dogged checker and one of the most physically imposing combatants in the league

Smith was a talented and confident figure whose brashness on the ice got him into many hostile situations.

Smith waged a year-long battle with Toronto's rugged defenseman Red Horner that was followed closely by fans and media throughout the league.

Here's the RW (same side of the ice as Orr, presumably in the vacinity for puck battles inthe d-zone) who will be out with Orr at even stregnth most of the time, and on the first PP unit.

On top of that, if the situation calls for it, O'Reilly will be over the boards in no time. If at any point Demers feels uncomfortable with the personnel out against Orr (I can't see it happening too frequently considering Smith and Flaman will both be on with Orr most of the game) he can just send O'Reilly out for the odd shift to make sure things go smoothly.

Add that to the fact that Orr isn't soft, himself, and I think that dirty play will be managable, especially with us likely ending up with most of the powerplays due to Springfield's intentions.

I'll get in to tspecial teams next.

 

[raleh]

I almost started pimping Flaman for you, but then figured that wouldn't be in the spirit of the thing...

 

[Stoneberg]

I almost started pimping Flaman for you, but then figured that wouldn't be in the spirit of the thing...

Haha, I accidently posted it like halfway through writing up my post, there is some more there now. Flaman is definitely Orr's #1 bodyguard.

 

[John Flyers Fan]

Just a note, the Flyers intensions in 1974 weren't to injure Orr.

The thought was to dump the puck in his corner and wear him down by taking th ebody on him as much as humanly possible. They knew it was going to be a 6/7 game series, and with Orr playing 30+ minutes a night teh continuous hitting could come into play later in the series.

How effective was the strategy, decide for yourself:

Game 1 - 1 goal (game winner with under a minute to go) 1 assist, 6 shots, Bruins win 3-2

Game 2 - 0 points, 4 shots, Flyers win 3-2 in OT

Game 3 - 1 assist, 5 shots, Flyers win 4-1

Game 4 - 1 assist, 6 shots, Flyers win 4-2

Game 5 - 2 goals, 1 assist, 9 shots, Bruins win 5-1

Game 6 - 3 shots, Flyers win 1-0

2 Bruins wins - 3 goals, 2 assist and 15 shots
4 Bruins losses - 0 goals, 2 assists and 17 shots

 

[Stoneberg]

Just a note, the Flyers intensions in 1974 weren't to injure Orr.

The thought was to dump the puck in his corner and wear him down by taking th ebody on him as much as humanly possible. They knew it was going to be a 6/7 game series, and with Orr playing 30+ minutes a night teh continuous hitting could come into play later in the series.

How effective was the strategy, decide for yourself:

Game 1 - 1 goal (game winner with under a minute to go) 1 assist, 6 shots, Bruins win 3-2

Game 2 - 0 points, 4 shots, Flyers win 3-2 in OT

Game 3 - 1 assist, 5 shots, Flyers win 4-1

Game 4 - 1 assist, 6 shots, Flyers win 4-2

Game 5 - 2 goals, 1 assist, 9 shots, Bruins win 5-1

Game 6 - 3 shots, Flyers win 1-0

2 Bruins wins - 3 goals, 2 assist and 15 shots
4 Bruins losses - 0 goals, 2 assists and 17 shots

Thanks for the insight, much appreciated. It doesn't seem like Orr was wearing down too much, considering the second last game of the series (statisticaly) appears to be his best.

Not that 7 points in 6 games is terrible or anything, but my question to you is how much of Orr being "contained" can be attributed to Parent at his peak? More directly, might Cheevers have yielded a similar result, or was a peak Parent standing on his head?

 

[TheDevilMadeMe]

Thanks for the insight, much appreciated. It doesn't seem like Orr was wearing down too much, considering the second last game of the series (statisticaly) appears to be his best.

Not that 7 points in 6 games is terrible or anything, but my question to you is how much of Orr being "contained" can be attributed to Parent at his peak? More directly, might Cheevers have yielded a similar result, or was a peak Parent standing on his head?

JFF can answer better, but from what I've read, Bobby Clarke is given a huge amount of credit for basically being in Orr's face the entire time. I'm sure that peak Parent was a big boon too.

 

[raleh]

Thanks for the insight, much appreciated. It doesn't seem like Orr was wearing down too much, considering the second last game of the series (statisticaly) appears to be his best.

Not that 7 points in 6 games is terrible or anything, but my question to you is how much of Orr being "contained" can be attributed to Parent at his peak? More directly, might Cheevers have yielded a similar result, or was a peak Parent standing on his head?

Put in the exact same situation, no, the Flyers don't win the cup with a peaked Cheevers instead of a peaked Parent.

But we've got Shore and Potvin to try to cancel that out. Being as fair as possible, I'll say they're the second and seventh best defensemen in the league. I have them third and fifth, but but I'd say 2nd and 7th is a good way to average it out. I don't think too many people would disagree with that. Switch Parent and Cheevers and add the second and seventh best dmen instead of Van Impe and Watson (or whoever were considered the two best Flyers D). So that puts Brad Park and say, Jacques Laperriere on the team; I think the result stays the same, or Flyers win in maybe even less games.

All of the above is fantasy, but it's the only way I can respond to Cheevers instead of Parent. But I think the simple answer to your question is, Parent had a lot to do with it, and as much as I like him, Philly could not have won with Cheevers in net with the exact same team.

 

[raleh]

JFF can answer better, but from what I've read, Bobby Clarke is given a huge amount of credit for basically being in Orr's face the entire time. I'm sure that peak Parent was a big boon too.

Yes, having the best defensive forward of all time definitely helps the case, and I'm actually starting to frustrate myself continuing to bring up my big two dmen, but again, Philly managed to do it with a defense by committee. I've got an insane 1-2 punch back there. Now enough about them! haha.

Peca and Northcott are my two guys to do (as close to) Clarke's job. Just dump the puck into his corner and chase him around like a dog. I'm comfortable with both of their lines out there against Orr, Northcott's line in particular. I think having Drillon standing around like a goof in front of the Halifax net while Northcott harasses Bobby in the corner is going to force Flaman into using some of that strength to move Drillon. Hopefully...

...either that or Halifax'll be on a perpetual power play with Drillon just chillin' with Esposito watching the game.

 

[Stoneberg]

Put in the exact same situation, no, the Flyers don't win the cup with a peaked Cheevers instead of a peaked Parent.

But we've got Shore and Potvin to try to cancel that out. Being as fair as possible, I'll say they're the second and seventh best defensemen in the league. I have them third and fifth, but but I'd say 2nd and 7th is a good way to average it out. I don't think too many people would disagree with that. Switch Parent and Cheevers and add the second and seventh best dmen instead of Van Impe and Watson (or whoever were considered the two best Flyers D). So that puts Brad Park and say, Jacques Laperriere on the team; I think the result stays the same, or Flyers win in maybe even less games.

All of the above is fantasy, but it's the only way I can respond to Cheevers instead of Parent. But I think the simple answer to your question is, Parent had a lot to do with it, and as much as I like him, Philly could not have won with Cheevers in net with the exact same team.

Fair assessment, I wasn't really trying to dig at your goaltending as mine is nothing to brag about in the playoffs either. Of course having two incredible defensemen helps to buffer the fact that Cheevers isn't Parent, I was more curious as to how much the goalie had to do with "stopping" Orr to help in assessing the effectiveness of the strategy itself.

 

[VanIslander]

Wednesday is Voting Day

 

[Stoneberg]

Well, since today is voting day, I guess I should clarify my intentions.

The Mooseheads will be matching Richard's line, with Orr and Flaman, against the Lindros line assuming it is backed by one of Springfield's elite defensemen. I feel that what I give up in size and stregnth in this match up up front is both mitigated and greatly outweighed by:

• Speed. My "2nd line" can fly, this will be great for exploiting slower guys like Kerr on the counter attack. This will be key, especially given Springfield's intentions to aggresively pursue my best playmaker in the corners.
• Defensive prowess. Both Richard and Smith are renowned for their defensive abilities, and Martin is willing to put in the effort on the back check as well. I think they can effectively stop Springfield's below average first line.
• Work ethic, especially guys like Richard and Smith on my end who are well known for their intensity and effort. In fairness, we all know that Cashman brings it too, just with less offensive ability.
• Offensive ability. It's somewhat close when comparing the personnel up front, but add in Orr on my end and it's no contest.

However, I will be relying heavily on Flaman giving Kerr a hard time in front of the net and Hooley holding his own against Cash along the boards. Kerr's big butt parked in front of the net and Cash in the corners are my two main concerns with this matchup.

I expect my second line to outscore his first line by a significant amount in this series in this match up.

We will also be matching Boucher's line up against the Sittler line, backed by Mortson's pairing for the most part. Frankly, given the personnel and their abilities, I think that the Moosheads top line should be able to outscore the second line of Springfield. However, the gap will be mitigated by whichever elite defensemen he has on the ice with them. However, I think it's clear that Boucher and Schriner are significantly greater offensive weapons than Sittler and Northcott (respectively), while Drillon is more of a threat than Middleton. The playmaking brought by either Potvin or Shore will help but isn't even enough to mitigate the gap in that area between Boucher and Sittler alone.

I don't know much about Northcott and Drillon beyond the numbers, is there a noteworthy defensive presence on this line?

I expect my first line to be able to outscore his second line in this series, slightly but decisively. (Could vary depending on any light shed on the defensive abilities of Springfield's line)

My third line is more than capable of negating any scoring depth advantage that Springfield has.Poulin will square off with Bowie, and his line shouldn't have much trouble shutting them down, as well as getting it in deep and making his defense work. Obviously we want Poulin getting significantly more minutes than his fourth liners, which he will get on the PK and in situations where we can't get our above-mentioned match ups in the top six, due to fatigue or whatever. I'm certain that this line can eat minutes against Springfield's first two lines, when required.

That leaves my fourth line against his third line. Clearly my line won't be doing much offensively in that scenario, but their job isn't to score. They will get it in deep, crash and bang the Springfield defense, and get in Cheevers' face (or on his back) for 5-6 minutes a night.

Bubla and Langevin will get their ES minutes agains the third and fourth line of Springfield.

The bottom line is that if he's focusing his attention on Orr, I have the weapons up front to capitalize on the powerplays and counter attacks that arise because of it. I just don't think Springfield has the fire power to outscore the Mooseheads, especially given the fact that the Mooseheads are a very solid defensive team, and should be getting more PP's than Springfield given the teams strategy. There is something to be said for size and physicality being brought by Springfield, but I don't think it's anything that the more talented team can't handle. It's not like anyone on my team was soft. (aside from maybe Schriner but I haven't seen quotes in for either side of the argument yet)

If Orr goes down, it's a whole new ball game...which is what makes this strategy compelling. As shown above, I think I will have the personnel to ensure that nothing bad happens, and if it does, Shore or Potvin will be next to the locker room via cheap shot.

 

[seventieslord]

I don't know much about Northcott and Drillon beyond the numbers, is there a noteworthy defensive presence on this line?

Not enough to say noteworthy, but there is enough evidence out there to at least say that they are good.

 

[raleh]

Not enough to say noteworthy, but there is enough evidence out there to at least say that they are good.

We all know that Drillon is useless on his side of the red line. If he wasn't, he'd be selected a lot earlier than he is. This is what you get when you pick him.

Sittler is sort of a guy who just does his job defensively, from what I understand.

Northcott spent some time on defense and there are sources that will say he was good, but none that say he was elite. I think he patrolled his wing and checked diligently, but he wasn't Bob Gainey.

That's really all I have time for today; of all the days for me to get busy, it's on voting day! I'll get my votes in, but I won't be able to say much more. Sorry boys!