What if Martin Brodeur had started the last game of the 06/07 season?

[Roomtemperature]

Everyone would have made the playoffs inbetween lockouts... probably not much else.

 

[Big Phil]

Those "lowly Islanders" were the team the Leafs were battling for the final playoff spot!

They were still lowly. I never said the Leafs weren't because they were too.

 

[Kyle McMahon]

That was the Islanders 4th playoff appearance in 5 seasons, calling them "lowly" is pretty silly.

I liked their PP unit that included Ryan Smyth, Miro Satan, Tom Poti, and Marc-Andre Bergeron. Made me feel like the Oilers made the playoffs. I don't think they ever had Mike York out there with them, but it's possible.

 

[Hawkey Town 18]

In what universe is a goalie sitting out a meaningless game to his own team in what would be his 79th start of an 82 game season anything but completely normal? Goaltender is a position that regularly takes nights off anyway...I just don't get anyone being surprised by this one.


To answer the question...My guess would be NJ wins that game, but I didn't see it. How did Clemmensen play?

 

[Megahab]

I remember Don Cherry the night before the game saying things like "do the right thing", saying that the Devils should start Brodeur.

The Saturday night Leafs vs. Habs game was one of my worst moments as a sports fan. I couldn't believe the Habs blew their lead and lost. I was rooting hard for the Islanders the next day.

Can't believe that was more than six years ago.

 

[Brodeur]

To answer the question...My guess would be NJ wins that game, but I didn't see it. How did Clemmensen play?

Only vague recollection now, but Clemmensen was adequate. The thing from that game that was notable was the Devils tying the game with one second left in regulation (Islanders had a 2-0 lead with less than five minutes left in regulation): http://espn.go.com/nhl/boxscore?gameId=270408011

So that was a brief glimmer of hope for Leafs fans as they sweated through the OT/shootout. Without looking up the numbers, the Islanders had a good 1-2 for the shootout with Miro Satan and Viktor Kozlov. Kozlov was on the Devils the previous season and pretty much epitomized a 4th liner/shootout specialist. As much as I disliked Kozlov's time with the Devils, he was close to automatic in the shootout.

Both would end up scoring on Clemmensen, but it's anybody's guess whether Brodeur would have been any better (until recently Brodeur had been above average in the shootout).

Perhaps the odd thing looking at the boxscore was the Devils using Sergei Brylin over Patrik Elias or even Jamie Langenbrunner in the shootout.

 

[TheDevilMadeMe]

Only vague recollection now, but Clemmensen was adequate. The thing from that game that was notable was the Devils tying the game with one second left in regulation (Islanders had a 2-0 lead with less than five minutes left in regulation): http://espn.go.com/nhl/boxscore?gameId=270408011

So that was a brief glimmer of hope for Leafs fans as they sweated through the OT/shootout. Without looking up the numbers, the Islanders had a good 1-2 for the shootout with Miro Satan and Viktor Kozlov. Kozlov was on the Devils the previous season and pretty much epitomized a 4th liner/shootout specialist. As much as I disliked Kozlov's time with the Devils, he was close to automatic in the shootout.

Both would end up scoring on Clemmensen, but it's anybody's guess whether Brodeur would have been any better (until recently Brodeur had been above average in the shootout).

Perhaps the odd thing looking at the boxscore was the Devils using Sergei Brylin over Patrik Elias or even Jamie Langenbrunner in the shootout.

Elias was really bad at the shooutout when we first started having them - he tended to overthink things. Obviously, he's gotten better.

 

[Sacha Baron Corbin]

What if the Penguins traded the 2005 first overall pick to the Leafs for Aki Berg and a bag of pucks?

They would've taken Marek Zagrapan or Sasha Pokulok.

 

[Big Phil]

That was the Islanders 4th playoff appearance in 5 seasons, calling them "lowly" is pretty silly.

They haven't gotten out of the first round of the playoffs in 20 years. They squeaked in in 2007 never made it in 2006, and didn't make it again until 2013. Whoever was getting into the 8th spot in 2007 was not beating Buffalo anyway. You could call that rather "lowl" in my eyes, but either way.

 

[JaysCyYoung]

It seriously pissed me off at the time, but the Devils were well within their rights to have done what was in their club's best interest and rested Brodeur.

I think they probably would have defeated New York, but the blame still rests on the Leafs for not finding an additional point somewhere over the course of the preceding games to that point.

Sure they likely lose to Buffalo in their first round series, but at least it would have eliminated the asinine "Leafs are the only club that hasn't made the playoffs since the lockout" taunts. Especially since I think the 2006-07 Leafs were a better club than the 2006-07 Thrashers, 2008-09 Blue Jackets, or 2011-12 Panthers for instance.

 

[Brodeur]

I think they probably would have defeated New York, but the blame still rests on the Leafs for not finding an additional point somewhere over the course of the preceding games to that point.

This reminded me of the Devils/Leafs game from early in that season: http://espn.go.com/nhl/boxscore?gameId=261012011

Toronto had a 6-3 lead after two periods. Brian Gionta would get a natural hat trick in the third, with the tying goal coming with 38 seconds left in regulation. John Madden would get the winning goal in the shootout.

 

[Kyle McMahon]

Leafs played the Islanders a few days before the end of the season, and lost. That was their big chance.

The Isles getting in actually took a perfect storm of results over the last week of the season. Their odds of making the playoffs with 4 games remaining were probably less than 5%.

 

[Boom Boom Bear]

on a related note, in 88 my Dad & i bought tickets to the last Canucks game of the season versus the Kings... months in advance. we wanted to see Gretzky in a Kings uni. traveled six hours to the game.

when we got there we learned that the Great One was a healthy scratch... Ftorek was "resting him" for the playoffs. man, were we pissed!

the Old Man wanted a refund... hates Ftorek to this day

 

[puckyeah]

Some people thought since the game still meant the outcome of who finished 8th and 9th in the Eastern Conference, the Devils should have started Brodeur and not made it easier for the Islanders playing their #2 Goalie.

Some teams and managers/coaches believe that you don't taint the game and you play to win if that game affects other teams standings.

You have a point, its a bad beat. Many would say that if you wanted to make the playoffs, you shouldnt have put yourself in a position to need help from another team, but that's tough to swallow especially since the Isles and Devils are at least mini-rivals being in the same division (or were at the time).

Things would have been different i believe.

 

[Eisen]

on a related note, in 88 my Dad & i bought tickets to the last Canucks game of the season versus the Kings... months in advance. we wanted to see Gretzky in a Kings uni. traveled six hours to the game.

when we got there we learned that the Great One was a healthy scratch... Ftorek was "resting him" for the playoffs. man, were we pissed!

the Old Man wanted a refund... hates Ftorek to this day

Hehe, I can see that.

 

[Fish on The Sand]

Everyone would have made the playoffs inbetween lockouts... probably not much else.

Except the Islanders that is

 

[Roomtemperature]

Except the Islanders that is

Well I forgot that part so true... makes it more interesting and dramatic in hindsight

 

[sbresistor]

Devils would have scored more