Where we stand at the 22 game mark....

[drwpreds]

We have now completed what will almost certainly be the worst part of our schedule. We just finished the following in our last 15 games:

@ Montreal W
@ Winnipeg W
@ Minnesota L
WINNIPEG W
ST. LOUIS L
@ Phoenix SOL
@ LA W
@ Colorado W
@ Winnipeg L
@ New Jersey L
@ NYI L
@ Pittsburgh L
CHICAGO W
@ Detroit W
@ Toronto W

That is 12 of the last 15 on the road and 9 of the last 10 on road.

For the full 15 games, we went 8-6-1.

For the past 10 games, in which we played 9 out of 10 on the road with the only home game being Chicago (which everyone assumed an L), we went 5-4-1, despite that horrific 4 game losing streak.

I don’t know about anyone else, but going into those 2 stretches, I would have gladly taken 8-6-1 for the 15, and 5-4-1 for the last 10.

So, we now stand at 11-9-2 after 22 games, roughly a quarter of the season.

If you had told me in August that, facing that brutal schedule, and having all the issues the team has had (losing Rinne, other injuries, very little production from forwards, poor team defense, the overall youth of the roster, etc, etc)- I would have gladly taken 11-9-2. I think overall you have to say that we have had a pretty good first quarter of the season all things considered. Heck, other than that horrific 4 game streak, we are 11-5-2.

It may be wishful thinking on my part, but you have to think that having made it through the brutal part of our schedule, we should get better and better as the season goes along, ESPECIALLY if we can get Pekka back. If we can go 11-9-2 with all those issues/schedule, we should do better than that the rest of the way.

The bad news is that even if we do continue to improve, it is going to be difficult to make the playoffs in the unbelievably stacked West- we may wind up having a good season AND missing the playoffs at the same time……

Thoughts??

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[thecloser]

yeah it's tough. you want to do well and push for the playoffs but the west is sooo stacked. its kind of a damned if you do, damned if you don't situation.

If we play well and still end the season without making the playoffs we're gonna get a mid 1st round pick. if we tank we get a top pick. It's tough either way because as well as we've played we still could be on the outside looking in when it's all said and done.

and poile might make a push at the deadline to get some rentals in here to make a push for the playoffs which could be detrimental to our prospects/picks pool.

it's kind of a difficult situation.

 

[weeze]

Surely the other West teams that are doing so well will not be able to keep up that pace. They have beat up on the East teams for a majority of the points. Wait till they start playing one another, their records will then be, hopefully, within reach.

 

[ILikeItILoveIt]

West will come back down to earth by the end of the season. Granted, we're playing 28 game instead of 15 against the East, but the law of averages has to kick in. It may take 100 points to make the playoffs (right now it would take 108). I don't think there's a dominant team in the West. We can beat any of them when we're playing our game. We just need consistency. Maz has played well lately but he's still a rebound machine. He's not as good as he's looking right now but maybe he's building confidence. We need to make hay during this next stretch at home, starting tomorrow. Our youth (Wilson/Josi/Smith/Jones/Ellis/Maz) makes us inconsistent by definition. Can we be good for long stretches while relying on young guys? We'll find out.

 

[Dave is a killer]

West will come back down to earth by the end of the season. Granted, we're playing 28 game instead of 15 against the East, but the law of averages has to kick in. It may take 100 points to make the playoffs (right now it would take 108). I don't think there's a dominant team in the West. We can beat any of them when we're playing our game. We just need consistency. Maz has played well lately but he's still a rebound machine. He's not as good as he's looking right now but maybe he's building confidence. We need to make hay during this next stretch at home, starting tomorrow. Our youth (Wilson/Josi/Smith/Jones/Ellis/Maz) makes us inconsistent by definition. Can we be good for long stretches while relying on young guys? We'll find out.

maybe, maybe not and maybe the West is a much stronger Conference ... 30 Points in 22 games for the Bruins # 9 in the League, 1st in the Eastern Conference

 

[goeb]

Considering how many road games the Preds played I think their record is satisfactory.

With all the home games they have in hand, it should put them above the .500 level soon. Chances at a playoff spot looks bleak though, can't blame it on the Preds too much though, this division is unreal.

 

[Cashville]

They've done well; proud of the team.

 

[jwhouk]

Never, never, NEVER underestimate what a hot goaltender can do for a team. We all should have learned that lesson with Vokie.

That being said - it would not surprise me if we did manage to get back in the playoff hunt (I suspect things are gonna play tighter right before and just after the Olympic break). Whether or not it's a repeat of 2002... I don't know. If it is, I'm not sure Poile and Trotz make it to next season if that happens.

 

[Bringer of Jollity]

Never, never, NEVER underestimate what a hot goaltender can do for a team. We all should have learned that lesson with Vokie.

That being said - it would not surprise me if we did manage to get back in the playoff hunt (I suspect things are gonna play tighter right before and just after the Olympic break). Whether or not it's a repeat of 2002... I don't know. If it is, I'm not sure Poile and Trotz make it to next season if that happens.

Team is on pace for around 90 points right now. I think that probably gets us close, but they need to play at a slightly better pace than they have thus far to get a sniff of the 8th seed. And that's about all they can do, can't really worry about what everyone else is doing. We'll see how it goes.

 

[Dave is a killer]

Team is on pace for around 90 points right now. I think that probably gets us close, but they need to play at a slightly better pace than they have thus far to get a sniff of the 8th seed. And that's about all they can do, can't really worry about what everyone else is doing. We'll see how it goes.

I think Friedmann mentioned in his 30 thoughts article that it'd take more than 100 points just to qualify in the Western Conference

 

[Bringer of Jollity]

I think Friedmann mentioned in his 30 thoughts article that it'd take more than 100 points just to qualify in the Western Conference

I can understand the reasoning based on play thus far, but I think things will settle eventually. I think 96 needs to be the base goal.

 

[kypredsfan]

I think this team will battle for the 8 seed, hope anyways. But even if we started off too slowly to get back in it, you have to be happy with the way they've played lately. Maz is playing his heart out.