December 2013 NHL thread

[Death From Above]

The assault case against Avalanche goalie Semyon Varlemov has been dismissed, essentially due to lack of evidence.

[Robert]

And a brown paper bag full of money. Otherwise known as a typical KHL payoff.

[Death From Above]

Jason Gregor ‏@JasonGregor 59m

Via #Coyotes S. Doan has been diagnosed with some form of Rocky Mountain Fever, a bacterial disease that affects the lining of blood cells.

 

I have no idea what this actually means. Hopefully it's less serious than that sounds.

[odessasteps]

Very common to get it from ticks.

We have lots of people at work (being in a wooden rurual area) get ticks and we have to have them tested for it.

Someone i know had one come back positive and they had to take antibiotics for 2 weeks and that was it.

[Death From Above]

Attacking the lining of blood cells sounds so sci fi out of context. Now I'm disappointed.

[mco543]

This is the Panthers I remember. They play so well the last few games, especially on defense, and they turn back into shit for Markstrom's game. They bail out Clemmensen for 6 games and leave Markstrom out to dry. It was so obvious this was going to happen that I thought maybe I'd be wrong but I guess not.

 

Also, am I missing or forgetting something that caused these 2 teams to hate each other?

[Death From Above]

Henrik and Daniel Sedin may be the two worst players in the NHL in the shootout.

 

Both were bad tonight, but Henrik's was particularly stunning. In fairness a couple of Chicago's shooters won't be making the highlights either.

[Jiji]

Shootouts are the worst.

[Charlie M.]

Henrik's shootout attempts are basically him waiting for someone to pass to and then skating into the goalie.

[Tabe]

Daniel and Henrik would fit right in on the Red Wings then. Combine guys who suck at the shootout with goalies who suck and you end up with an NHL record 12 straight losses in shootouts like Detroit has.

[Death From Above]

Henrik's shootout attempts are basically him waiting for someone to pass to and then skating into the goalie.

 

This is such a perfect description of what he did tonight. It had me rolling.

 

Of course, Chicago lost anyway. On a similar topic how on earth is Patrick Kane 0/8 this year? That seems inconceivable.

[sabremike]

Shootouts are the worst.

After killing my Whalers the shootout Is Gary Bettman's biggest crime against the game of hockey.

[Tabe]

I hate shootouts. Give me a 10 minute 4-on-4 overtime and leave it at that. Ties aren't the worst thing in the world.

[odessasteps]

both leafs and wings strong armed the 24/7 camers this week.

 

another idea ruined by hockey conservatism and paranoia

[Bear Wyatt]

The Bolts had to throw everything but the kitchen sink to beat Justin Peters tonight.  Losing Steve Stamkos hasn't been as backbreaking as everyone thought.

[Robert]

I don't get the outrage. If HBO is mad they should use that as part of the story they are trying to tell about both teams.

[Charlie M.]

Because it was part of the deal of getting all the extra cash from the Winter Classic. 

[Robert]

There you go - I haven't seen it yet but people who saw 24/7 today said they turned the cameras being banned into a segment on the show. Good for HBO.

[sabremike]

If the NHL has any balls they will punish the teams in the most punitive way possible for their actions. They are shitting on league business, if the Devils did this the league would stomp them in a heartbeat.

[Death From Above]

So how's that Oilers game going tonight?

 

 

With 7 minutes to go. Deservedly so.

[The Man Known as Dan]

DFA, I'm sorry you have to cheer for that team.

I actively feel bad for Perron. Blues when they were horrible, they get good, then ship them to Edmonton. Yuck.

[Death From Above]

Someone threw a jersey on the ice after the game tonight out of the crowd, which I'll admit disturbed me more than it probably should. I have literally never seen that in Edmonton, and my family still had season tickets in 1993 and 1994 when that team was t-e-r-r-i-b-l-e.

 

This team might actually be worse. It's not like they aren't trying. They just aren't very good, and aren't physically strong enough to handle a team like St. Louis or Los Angeles. Watching them play the bigger, stronger teams... it's disheartening.

[Fat Spanish Waiter]

I don't get it. Genuinely. They built through the draft with a series of high picks. What's missing?

[Death From Above]

Part of it is an inability to get some defensive depth, part of it is that if you look at basically the top 7 forwards, six of them can't play defense: Hall, Hemsky, Eberle, RNH, Yakupov, and Gagner. Gagner especially is having a nightmare season. If the organization had better depth I'd have a hard time believing he'd be playing at all. Yakupov has the worst plus/minus in the whole NHL, and that's with his ass stapled to the bench. Perron is the only genuinely well rounded player of the group. And the only good forward past those seven is Boyd Gordon so your bottom two lines are... really not good. You have one player out of place on a checking line, and basically not the kind of support from the depth guys you would see from a team like Boston.

 

So it's sort of a combined issue of not enough defensive ability/size from the skill core, as well as the lack of finding effective depth beyond the first round picks.

 

I don't think it's coaching. Eakins is the 5th in 6th years. He's too easy to scapegoat.

 

I really don't know where the team should go. I didn't think we were going to challenge for a Cup this year or something, but this is just... it never even crossed my mind that the Oilers could finish behind the Flames this year. Not in my worst nightmares.

[The Man Known as Dan]

Not that DFA's explanation isn't very very good, but I just wanted to add: Perron was traded by the Blues in part because he was arguably the worst defensive forward in our top 9.

I don't want to say coaching in it's current form is the problem, but a major reason Magnus Paajarvi has had problems cracking the Blues lineup is that he has had to get used to the major change of system. The thing is, I have no idea what Edmonton's defensive system is. That in and of itself is a problem.