WCF: (1) Anaheim Ducks vs (3) Chicago Blackhawks

[Bergeron37]

This matchup's great for the sport of hockey. Love that 2 teams who play an entertaining style made it to the finals.

 

[Carolinas Identity*]

Go back like 10 pages we already shredded you SoCal crazy people for thinking Kale on Pizza is a good idea thats just pure sacrilege. as one poster said

"Anaheim isn't a real pizza market. No knowledgeable pizza fans. Wouldn't even show up to the pizzeria if you were handing out free slices."-AINEC

Chicago >>>> Anaheim in Pizza AINEC

Nah man, "sacrilegious" is what the majority of Carolina fans call me for putting mayonnaise on my pork.

But, but it's good damn it

 

[Getzmonster]

Nate Thompson and Cogliano> Patrick Sharp and Tera-whatever. This is great stuff

You probably aren't wanting an honest breakdown, but I'm bored, so deal with it.

The Ducks have decent depth role players who all play fairly effectively within their roles and can chip in offense to boot. Cogliano is probably going to be the most noticeable bottom six guy on the Ducks. He plays such a smart game and has elite speed which is used primarily to forecheck like a demon and force turnovers. He also racks up a bunch of hits, though being a smaller guy none are going to leave a mark. He's good for 15-20 goals each season and even though he doesn't capitalize on nearly enough of the scoring opportunities he creates, he converts just enough to be a factor. He's also a pretty good threat on the PK for shorthanded opportunities.

Thompson is your run of the mill 4th line center. He hits, he blocks shots, he plays the PK and is strong on the dots, offering a lefty option for faceoffs. But he's not as defensively sound as you might hope for, and he's a black hole offensively. For the most part, he skates well and crashes & bangs well enough to be disruptive. Bruce seems to trust him quite a bit more than the kid, Rakell, and even went with a pseudo-shutdown line of Cogliano-Thompson-Silfverberg for many games during this season, and they were extremely effective. They were lights out shutting down top six lines against LA for example.

Beyond that we have Palmieri, who could be a poor man's Sharp in that he's arguably a top six scorer relegated to the bottom six for depth purposes, but he's had a pretty rough playoffs so far. He's played small, and hasn't been pushing the issue offensively. I'm hoping he finds his game against a less physical Hawks team.

The other spots will be filled in with serviceable kids like Rakell, possibly Etem and/or Sekac... all with lots of x-factor (similar to Terravainen, though I'm not sure how they would rank with him comparatively. I think he might have the edge). We might also see Jackman (grinder) or Fleischmann (on the downside of his career, he's a veteran with skill but he hasn't done much for us outside of his one odd game playing 4th center).

The Ducks have nobody that compares to the likes of Sharp on a 3rd line. That's just unreal. I think we stack up just fine otherwise, and much like Chi we have tons of untapped potential in our bottom six that on any given night can be a significant factor. Kruger is a little underrated and Vermette is the guy many Ducks fans were pining for at the trade deadline to provide an upgrade/insurance to Rakell. I'm not sure that Vermette has been the player many expected, so I don't see a big mismatch there, but on a line with Tera and Sharp the Ducks will have their hands full.

The bottom six edge goes to the Hawks, but the Ducks can go with quite a few different looks to adjust as needed without ever having to downgrade quality. With nearly all of our depth guys they can score, play physical, and are responsible both ways. It's no cake walk.

 

[DarthYenik]

Go back like 10 pages we already shredded you SoCal crazy people for thinking Kale on Pizza is a good idea thats just pure sacrilege. as one poster said

"Anaheim isn't a real pizza market. No knowledgeable pizza fans. Wouldn't even show up to the pizzeria if you were handing out free slices."-AINEC

Chicago >>>> Anaheim in Pizza AINEC

For further reference this... ...means sarcasm, but also generally means, "I'm kidding" or "just pulling your leg".

But deep dish pizza is gross.

 

[not a troll]

Go back like 10 pages we already shredded you SoCal crazy people for thinking Kale on Pizza is a good idea thats just pure sacrilege. as one poster said

"Anaheim isn't a real pizza market. No knowledgeable pizza fans. Wouldn't even show up to the pizzeria if you were handing out free slices."-AINEC

Chicago >>>> Anaheim in Pizza AINEC

I don't think anyone who is thinking clearly would ever think Southern California is a better pizza market than Chicago. Whoever would even think that is blinded by orange tinted glasses.

Now, if we're talking about Mexican food...

I know what I just posted, but I'm sorry, burritos are better than pizza.

Carne Asada on it's own is better than pizza. But you put it in a burrito with guacamole and grilled veggies, and it's the perfect food.

And that's the most in depth analysis I've given in this thread.

Sometimes you want a burrito and other times you want a pizza. I wouldn't say one is better than the other and if I had to choose to eat only one for the rest of my life it'd be a very difficult choice.

 

[Carolinas Identity*]

Important Question:

Is it sacrilege to eat pizza (whatever kind it is) with a knife & fork?

 

[hisgirlfriday]

You guys keep throwing this **** out there and have not backed it up. On what grounds is this true? Show me what you even mean by this.

Maybe in past playoffs, sure. If anything, this just shows you have not been watching the Ducks this year (which is fine) because Bruce has looked much, much better in this regard.

Why does it make you feel better to invent this straw man about no one but you seeing the Ducks play when reading people's opinions about the Ducks that happen to differ from your opinion of them?

Just because a person views the Ducks in a way you don't like doesn't mean they haven't seen them. I watched the 2014-15 Ducks all the time this year. If you wanted to watch a late game stream, they were the best bet for standings watch purposes and because they were an entertaining team with a fun style of play and explosive superstars capable of thrilling comeback victories and on rarer occasions hilarious emotional losses when things went sour.

Nothing I saw then or this playoffs has changed my perception of Bruce Boudreau. Or my sense that for all my frustrations with Q at times that the Hawks have quite the advantage behind the bench in this one.

Boudreau is the one who has to prove he can be a competent playoff coach. He'll have to prove this for the Ducks to win this series.

 

[Church of Toews*]

For further reference this... ...means sarcasm, but also generally means, "I'm kidding" or "just pulling your leg".

But deep dish pizza is gross.

i know i just wanted an excuse to post that and further hammer on the fact that Kale is disgusting

 

[Church of Toews*]

Important Question:

Is it sacrilege to eat pizza (whatever kind it is) with a knife & fork?

Counter question has anyone even ate a pizza with a knife and fork?

 

[Carolinas Identity*]

Counter question has anyone even ate a pizza with a knife and fork?

 

[Taze em]

You probably aren't wanting an honest breakdown, but I'm bored, so deal with it.

The Ducks have decent depth role players who all play fairly effectively within their roles and can chip in offense to boot. Cogliano is probably going to be the most noticeable bottom six guy on the Ducks. He plays such a smart game and has elite speed which is used primarily to forecheck like a demon and force turnovers. He also racks up a bunch of hits, though being a smaller guy none are going to leave a mark. He's good for 15-20 goals each season and even though he doesn't capitalize on nearly enough of the scoring opportunities he creates, he converts just enough to be a factor. He's also a pretty good threat on the PK for shorthanded opportunities.

Thompson is your run of the mill 4th line center. He hits, he blocks shots, he plays the PK and is strong on the dots, offering a lefty option for faceoffs. But he's not as defensively sound as you might hope for, and he's a black hole offensively. For the most part, he skates well and crashes & bangs well enough to be disruptive. Bruce seems to trust him quite a bit more than the kid, Rakell, and even went with a pseudo-shutdown line of Cogliano-Thompson-Silfverberg for many games during this season, and they were extremely effective. They were lights out shutting down top six lines against LA for example.

Beyond that we have Palmieri, who could be a poor man's Sharp in that he's arguably a top six scorer relegated to the bottom six for depth purposes, but he's had a pretty rough playoffs so far. He's played small, and hasn't been pushing the issue offensively. I'm hoping he finds his game against a less physical Hawks team.

The other spots will be filled in with serviceable kids like Rakell, possibly Etem and/or Sekac... all with lots of x-factor (similar to Terravainen, though I'm not sure how they would rank with him comparatively. I think he might have the edge). We might also see Jackman (grinder) or Fleischmann (on the downside of his career, he's a veteran with skill but he hasn't done much for us outside of his one odd game playing 4th center).

The Ducks have nobody that compares to the likes of Sharp on a 3rd line. That's just unreal. I think we stack up just fine otherwise, and much like Chi we have tons of untapped potential in our bottom six that on any given night can be a significant factor. Kruger is a little underrated and Vermette is the guy many Ducks fans were pining for at the trade deadline to provide an upgrade/insurance to Rakell. I'm not sure that Vermette has been the player many expected, so I don't see a big mismatch there, but on a line with Tera and Sharp the Ducks will have their hands full.

The bottom six edge goes to the Hawks, but the Ducks can go with quite a few different looks to adjust as needed without ever having to downgrade quality. With nearly all of our depth guys they can score, play physical, and are responsible both ways. It's no cake walk.

So if the bottom 6 edge goes to Chicago like you said, where are you making that up? Gonna shut down Saad/Toews/Hossa or Kane? No one has shut down Kane, ever. Odds are good that Saad/Toews/Hossa are breaking even with Getz/Perry.

You guys have Getz/Perry/Kesler, we have Toews/Kane/Sharp. The difference is our talent is spread out over three lines, yours is over 2. That means (to me) that you HAVE to have Getz/Perry beat the Toews line and by a pretty wide margin.

 

[ChewiesArmy]

Burrito > Pizza

Bwaahahhhaaaa...good one.

As for deep dish pizza, I like Gino's the best. Was never impressed with Uno's, Due's, or Malnati's, but, I never eat much deep dish anymore because I always have to go to Kuma's. Dem da Burgers!

Anyway...Hawks in 5...total homer pick and proud of it!

 

[Carolinas Identity*]

Cook Out has the best burgers AINEC, char grill is gross. I like In N Out and had Heart Attack Grill once (double bypass, it was p good)

 

[CantHandleTheD]

My absolute favorite theme from this thread is the "Ducks haven't played anyone like Chicago yet. They're going to be overwhelmed by the Hawks' speed/depth/skill/whatever." That's just plain funny. It's like a bad pickup line at a bar. "Hey, baby, you may have had a lot of dudes before me but once you go black(hawks), you never go back."

California based hockey is irrelevant to anyone that doesn't live in California. They will soon find out.

 

[Church of Toews*]

love how this thread is 20% debating the skill and depth of the teams and the other 80% is just debating life style preferences in both states

 

[hisgirlfriday]

You probably aren't wanting an honest breakdown, but I'm bored, so deal with it.

The Ducks have decent depth role players who all play fairly effectively within their roles and can chip in offense to boot. Cogliano is probably going to be the most noticeable bottom six guy on the Ducks. He plays such a smart game and has elite speed which is used primarily to forecheck like a demon and force turnovers. He also racks up a bunch of hits, though being a smaller guy none are going to leave a mark. He's good for 15-20 goals each season and even though he doesn't capitalize on nearly enough of the scoring opportunities he creates, he converts just enough to be a factor. He's also a pretty good threat on the PK for shorthanded opportunities.

Thompson is your run of the mill 4th line center. He hits, he blocks shots, he plays the PK and is strong on the dots, offering a lefty option for faceoffs. But he's not as defensively sound as you might hope for, and he's a black hole offensively. For the most part, he skates well and crashes & bangs well enough to be disruptive. Bruce seems to trust him quite a bit more than the kid, Rakell, and even went with a pseudo-shutdown line of Cogliano-Thompson-Silfverberg for many games during this season, and they were extremely effective. They were lights out shutting down top six lines against LA for example.

Beyond that we have Palmieri, who could be a poor man's Sharp in that he's arguably a top six scorer relegated to the bottom six for depth purposes, but he's had a pretty rough playoffs so far. He's played small, and hasn't been pushing the issue offensively. I'm hoping he finds his game against a less physical Hawks team.

The other spots will be filled in with serviceable kids like Rakell, possibly Etem and/or Sekac... all with lots of x-factor (similar to Terravainen, though I'm not sure how they would rank with him comparatively. I think he might have the edge). We might also see Jackman (grinder) or Fleischmann (on the downside of his career, he's a veteran with skill but he hasn't done much for us outside of his one odd game playing 4th center).

The Ducks have nobody that compares to the likes of Sharp on a 3rd line. That's just unreal. I think we stack up just fine otherwise, and much like Chi we have tons of untapped potential in our bottom six that on any given night can be a significant factor. Kruger is a little underrated and Vermette is the guy many Ducks fans were pining for at the trade deadline to provide an upgrade/insurance to Rakell. I'm not sure that Vermette has been the player many expected, so I don't see a big mismatch there, but on a line with Tera and Sharp the Ducks will have their hands full.

The bottom six edge goes to the Hawks, but the Ducks can go with quite a few different looks to adjust as needed without ever having to downgrade quality. With nearly all of our depth guys they can score, play physical, and are responsible both ways. It's no cake walk.

Thanks for the thoughtful in-depth write up.

I hope for the Hawks' sake that Bruce keeps throwing grinders like Jackman in the bottom six of your lineup rather than guys with more of a speed game.

 

[No Fun Shogun]

Counter question has anyone even ate a pizza with a knife and fork?

Thin pizza, yes. Don't do it.

Deep dish, no. Use the utensils.

 

[Carolinas Identity*]

I won't post the video because it's NSFW, but Jon Stewart did a hilarious skit on Donald Trump using a fork

 

[Getzmonster]

So if the bottom 6 edge goes to Chicago like you said, where are you making that up? Gonna shut down Saad/Toews/Hossa or Kane? No one has shut down Kane, ever. Odds are good that Saad/Toews/Hossa are breaking even with Getz/Perry.

You guys have Getz/Perry/Kesler, we have Toews/Kane/Sharp. The difference is our talent is spread out over three lines, yours is over 2. That means (to me) that you HAVE to have Getz/Perry beat the Toews line and by a pretty wide margin.

Unless I'm missing your point (sorry if so), I think you are highly underrating the Kesler line. Maroon-Getzlaf-Perry matches up just fine with the Toews line, and Beleskey-Kesler-Silfverberg matches up just fine with the Kane line. Kane will have his moments, but he'll also be defending against the Kesler line a fair amount. The top six matchup isn't lopsided in the slightest.

That's sort of what I was alluding to, the bottom six is relatively a wash if not for Sharp on the 3rd line. I see that as the key advantage, even if a slight one. But the Ducks have plenty of bottom six talent at their disposal albeit a little unproven. I also think some might be overlooking the impact of the blueline. The Ducks are getting the most offense from the back end of any team in the playoffs (last I checked). That's no fluke. We have Wiz in the press box and a guy like Vatanen playing on the 3rd pairing. These guys all activate and contribute to the offensive pressure. We don't have the top end talent of a guy like Keith, but we have more overall talent on the blueline through all three pairings. This is another area I think the Ducks can make up for any slight shortcoming on the front end.

edit: Just to add...

While I feel we stack up well with the matchups, one clear advantage the Hawks have is that push come to shove, if down a goal late in a game, they can throw all of their horses on a couple lines (Toews, Hossa, Kane, Sharp, Saad, etc.) and make it very difficult to close out games. The Ducks can't necessarily do the same. Getz, Perry, Kesler... sure. Then you're looking at Beleskey, Silfverberg, errr Maroon? Not quite the same caliber beyond the first big three or four guys, but the Ducks are amazing at playing from down a goal and finding ways to win, so there's certainly some intangible involved there.

 

[SirQuacksALot]

I don't think anyone who is thinking clearly would ever think Southern California is a better pizza market than Chicago. Whoever would even think that is blinded by orange tinted glasses.

Now, if we're talking about Mexican food...

Mexico > Italy ANIEC. TOMATOES ARENT EVEN ITALIAN, THEY COME FROM MEXICO. KNOW WHAT ELSE CAME FROM MEXICO? California.

I rest my case! This whole thing is obviously a joke, unrustle your jimmies.

 

[Church of Toews*]

Mexico > Italy ANIEC. TOMATOES ARENT EVEN ITALIAN, THEY COME FROM MEXICO. KNOW WHAT ELSE CAME FROM MEXICO? California.

I rest my case! This whole thing is obviously a joke, unrustle your jimmies.

Ireland is GOAT considering its the worlds largest Guinness and Potato factory

 

[duxfever]

Why does it make you feel better to invent this straw man about no one but you seeing the Ducks play when reading people's opinions about the Ducks that happen to differ from your opinion of them?

Just because a person views the Ducks in a way you don't like doesn't mean they haven't seen them. I watched the 2014-15 Ducks all the time this year. If you wanted to watch a late game stream, they were the best bet for standings watch purposes and because they were an entertaining team with a fun style of play and explosive superstars capable of thrilling comeback victories and on rarer occasions hilarious emotional losses when things went sour.

Nothing I saw then or this playoffs has changed my perception of Bruce Boudreau. Or my sense that for all my frustrations with Q at times that the Hawks have quite the advantage behind the bench in this one.

Boudreau is the one who has to prove he can be a competent playoff coach. He'll have to prove this for the Ducks to win this series.

Just seems to be a common theme when guys throw non-sense out about our players. Let's be real, it is tougher for the East Coast to see our games. Is it not? The same thing happened in the Winnipeg series. Those guys were delusional and spouting out misconceptions about the Ducks and their coach, much like is going on in here. Now obviously the Hawks are a much better team, but the discounting of the Ducks is ridiculous.

I call it like I see it and more often than not, people discount the Ducks because of unfamiliarity, which is fine considering it is tougher for West Coast teams to get their due until they are thrust into the spotlight and primetime.

Agree to disagree on Boudreau. People tend to think that just because a coach has a stigma, he cannot grow or improve. The Ducks are 8-1 in these playoffs and have advanced to the WCF. So has Bruce Boudreau been doing the same thing he has in years' past? Are we even having this conversation if the Ducks get out of the round against LA last year?

I am sure it is a combination of many things. Improved roster, better luck, better goaltending, but what's not to say it is also a better Boudreau?

 

[kaner23]

Just seems to be a common theme when guys throw non-sense out about our players. Let's be real, it is tougher for the East Coast to see our games. Is it not? The same thing happened in the Winnipeg series. Those guys were delusional and spouting out misconceptions about the Ducks and their coach, much like is going on in here. Now obviously the Hawks are a much better team, but the discounting of the Ducks is ridiculous.

I call it like I see it and more often than not, people discount the Ducks because of unfamiliarity, which is fine considering it is tougher for West Coast teams to get their due until they are thrust into the spotlight and primetime.

Agree to disagree on Boudreau. People tend to think that just because a coach has a stigma, he cannot grow or improve. The Ducks are 8-1 in these playoffs and have advanced to the WCF. So has Bruce Boudreau been doing the same thing he has in years' past? Are we even having this conversation if the Ducks get out of the round against LA last year?

I am sure it is a combination of many things. Improved roster, better luck, better goaltending, but what's not to say it is also a better Boudreau?

You definitely make a good point and I think (at least for me) that it's more of how good Q is for the Hawks than about how "bad" BB is for you guys. We have confidence in our coach that has done it before and is a future HOFer.

 

[Carolinas Identity*]

Mexico > Italy ANIEC. TOMATOES ARENT EVEN ITALIAN, THEY COME FROM MEXICO. KNOW WHAT ELSE CAME FROM MEXICO? California.

I rest my case! This whole thing is obviously a joke, unrustle your jimmies.

 

[Taze em]

The thing not being considered is that it's probably Kruger's line matched up against the Getzlaf or Kesler lines. That line is truly where Chicago gets their matchup advantages from. They break even or slightly lose constantly vs the top lines of the NHL.

So Q would probably have it:
Kruger vs. Getz- loss
Toews vs. Kesler- win
Kane vs Rakell- win
Sharp vs Thompson- win

What Q does is sacrifices the Kruger line. He puts them out to be slaughtered (but they don't get slaughtered) so that he can get big wins elsewhere in the lineup.

Too many coaches playing the Hawks are fine with it. They say "lol this dude is rolling their 4th vs our best line?! Good luck with that..." That's when they've lost because before you know it Kane or Sharp are out vs. the Tim Jackman's of the NHL and it's a wrap.

It's coaches like Babcock who realize this and they force the Zetterberg-Dats/Toews matchup even though Q is giving him a Kruger vs Zett/Dats matchup.