The Tank Megathread -- All Tank Talk & Standings Discussion Here

[iceburg]

In 2011 Gillis also had a pretty good core he inherited from Nonis and Burke in their prime

Burke and Nonis in their prime never made it past college hockey

 

[VanJack]

We're also getting elite, top line production from the Sedins, which will probably not last all season. I never thought we'd be bad enough to challenge for Matthews, but I'm starting to believe. Nobody at this point is on pace to finish as bad as Buffalo/Arizona/Edmonton did last year. The stars could align in our favour.

I would agree....games get tougher after Xmas and it wouldn't be an unlikely scenario for one or both of the Sedins to get nicked like they did in the Torts year....both Daniel and Henrik were battling injuries that year and the team cratered down the stretch.....I say rest 'em up for the Word Cup of Hockey and go full bore on the Austin Mathews tank.

 

[Billy Kvcmu]

Markstrom starting tonight.

That means we might have a chance....sigh

 

[iceburg]

Markstrom starting tonight.

That means we might have a chance....sigh

Nice. Was afraid they were going to give Miller the HNIC game and the Buffalo game.


edit: oh...this is the tank thread...I mean, oh no, endangering the tank!

 

[VanJack]

Markstrom starting tonight.

That means we might have a chance....sigh

Yeh...I was worried about that after the L.A. game.....if Markstrom cleans the Bruins clock tonight, there's a danger Willie will have to stick with him...Miller has let in so many third period goals....as we witnessed with Devan Dubnyk and the Wild last year, a goalie on top of his game can pile up points in a hurry.....The Oilers in their 'tank seasons' could always rely on spotty goaltending most nights...guess we'll just have to wait and see.

 

[racerjoe]

For those complaining about injuries how is Montreal doing without their number 1 goalie? He also happened to you know be the league MVP last year and Vezina trophy winner, but I am sure our 3C being out means more...

We just are not that good of a team, and really any injury will hurt us. I do agree we miss sutter, a better team would not. That is a huge difference.

 

[MikeK]

For those complaining about injuries how is Montreal doing without their number 1 goalie? He also happened to you know be the league MVP last year and Vezina trophy winner, but I am sure our 3C being out means more...

We just are not that good of a team, and really any injury will hurt us. I do agree we miss sutter, a better team would not. That is a huge difference.

I agree. It just speaks to the lack of depth and skill throughout the lineup when a guy like Sutter is a make or break piece. No disrespect to Sutter but he is who he is. On an actual good team losing a guy of his ilk wouldn't be a season breaker. We just aren't a very good team and haven't been for a few seasons now.

 

[Billy Kvcmu]

We're still 22th in the league despite missing a number of players to injuries, others are mired in slumps and we're coming off a horrid 3-12 record. It's practically impossible we will continue to perform this poorly, especially in our joke of a division.

This " joke of a division" will bounce back eventually, Ducks and Flames are both underperforming. Ducks is still a top 5 team in the league.

 

[NoShowWilly]

"count it"

 

[Peen]

I'd be satisfied with a Horvat goal and a 2 1 loss in regulation.

 

[Wisp]

I'd be satisfied with a Horvat goal and a 2 1 loss in regulation.

my dream season would be a 3-2 loss every night. Sedin manufactured goal + Kid manufactured goal.

 

[Gaunce4gm]

Sbisa and Dorsett 1st PP pls

 

[Bourne Endeavor]

For those complaining about injuries how is Montreal doing without their number 1 goalie? He also happened to you know be the league MVP last year and Vezina trophy winner, but I am sure our 3C being out means more...

We just are not that good of a team, and really any injury will hurt us. I do agree we miss sutter, a better team would not. That is a huge difference.

Montreal has a phenomenally better defense than we do, which is mostly how they're able to survive losing Price. Subban in particular is playing well beyond expectations on the defensive side lately. He's really stepped up.

That said, no, we're not that good.

This " joke of a division" will bounce back eventually, Ducks and Flames are both underperforming. Ducks is still a top 5 team in the league.

We're at the 25+ game mark and both Anaheim and Calgary continue to play like garbage. At what point does that excuse end?

 

[HSD19]

my dream season would be a 3-2 loss every night. Sedin manufactured goal + Kid manufactured goal.

Agreed!!!!!

 

[Peen]

my dream season would be a 3-2 loss every night. Sedin manufactured goal + Kid manufactured goal.

Play Markstrom 59 minutes and sub in Miller for the last 60 seconds to give up three goals.

 

[Nuckles]

We're at the 25+ game mark and both Anaheim and Calgary continue to play like garbage. At what point does that excuse end?

How come that applies to Calgary and Anaheim and not us?

 

[Bourne Endeavor]

We're also getting elite, top line production from the Sedins, which will probably not last all season. I never thought we'd be bad enough to challenge for Matthews, but I'm starting to believe. Nobody at this point is on pace to finish as bad as Buffalo/Arizona/Edmonton did last year. The stars could align in our favour.

I honestly think they will. The Sedins look completely reinvigorated, and unlikely the majority of players these days, they do not rely on speed to be competitive. This allows them to remain at the top of their game despite age slowing them down.

We have NOT dealt with significant injuries.

Contrary to popular belief, losing Sutter has hurt. It's forced us to deploy Horvat in a role he isn't ready for, while overplaying McCann to try and compensate. Say what you will of Prust, but he's honestly been among our better players this season. Hutton having to sit out a while has been disastrous. We simply lack the depth to sustain even those injuries, which is on Benning to rectify.

We don't have to continue to play this badly for the remainder of the season, just long enough for management to be pressured into trading guys like Vrbata and Hamhuis to prevent the massive failure that would be missing the playoffs and losing one of these guys to UFA for nothing.

Honestly, I doubt either are traded. Our defense is so bloody atrocious, we really cannot afford to trade Hamhuis. No, Pedan cannot be expected to take his place nor can we rely on Hutton. Doing so makes us comparable to Edmonton; deploying kids in significant roles and hoping they succeed despite their inexperience. Vrbata, unfortunately, is having an awful season. We won't get much for him unless he drastically improves, and frankly, if we're still in a playoff position around the deadline, they'll just keep him for a hopeful chance.

 

[Bourne Endeavor]

How come that applies to Calgary and Anaheim and not us?

Because no one expected anything from us. We were projected to finish 9-10th while Anaheim was a cup contender. They have a significantly higher mountain to climb after this dreadful start to their season than we do.

 

[PG Canuck]

We're still 22th in the league despite missing a number of players to injuries, others are mired in slumps and we're coming off a horrid 3-12 record. It's practically impossible we will continue to perform this poorly, especially in our joke of a division.

You don't leave me convinced.

 

[PG Canuck]

Because no one expected anything from us. We were projected to finish 9-10th while Anaheim was a cup contender. They have a significantly higher mountain to climb after this dreadful start to their season than we do.

And it looks like we will be right on par with that, if not worse. Hopefully.

 

[a Fool]

Anaheim had a historically terrible start. Getz and Silfverberg are shooting 2% and 3% and Kesler is 6%. Their top six will start scoring goals soon and they will advance quickly when that happens. They won't even be close to us by the end of the season... unless they keep playing Kevin on the top pair.

 

[particularsolution]

I honestly think they will. The Sedins look completely reinvigorated, and unlikely the majority of players these days, they do not rely on speed to be competitive. This allows them to remain at the top of their game despite age slowing them down

The Sedins will probably finish in the mid-70s range, maybe low 80s if all goes well. They have put up some insane numbers lately, though, and are probably due for at least a mild market correction. To put it in perspective, over the last 13 games the Sedins have 35 points between the 2 of them.. the team has won 3 games. This team is proving it can tank even with healthy Sedins producing at an insane rate. Any slow down, or worse yet, an injury, and the bottom will completely fall out.

 

[CanaFan]

Well since their 1-7 start Anaheim is something like 8-5-3 which, while not earth shattering, is certainly better than the pace we've put up since our 3-0-1 start (6-10-7).

So if one looks at how both teams are trending rather than just a snapshot of the standings today one would see that the Ducks are rounding into their expected form (slowly), as are we.

To suggest that they "couldn't" or "shouldn't" pass us in the next 50-55 games is optimistic bordering on naive to say the least.

And ya, Brandon Sutter is a significant injury for this team. A guy who is a 3C and on pace for 40 points. Let that sink in for a second. Because it says more about why this team is likely to continue to struggle than it does about the "unsustainability" of our injuries. Literally any injury is a "significant" one for a roster that is as thin as the cheese on a Panago pizza.

 

[keslerburrows]

If we lose we are in great position to drop to 23rd at some point in the next couple games.

 

[Hyzer]

If we lose we are in great position to drop to 23rd at some point in the next couple games.

yup. hopefully colorado can win tonight and i hope carolina can somehow squeeze out a win or at least a point tonight. maybe even toronto can win against the blues.


pls tank gods, have mercy