NHL Playoffs?

[hogannut]

Anyone watching? Nothing has been posted about the playoffs. Good hockey in most of the series. Where are all the Sens fans considering this year they look like the real thing? I've got a nice big gash in my arm just watiting for a Sens fan to show up with some salt!!:rofl: Detroit is looking good too. They seem to play better as the playoffs go on. Can't decide if Anneheim will beat them or not.

[laxgolf]

Anyone watching? Nothing has been posted about the playoffs. Good hockey in most of the series. Where are all the Sens fans considering this year they look like the real thing? I've got a nice big gash in my arm just watiting for a Sens fan to show up with some salt!!:rofl: Detroit is looking good too. They seem to play better as the playoffs go on. Can't decide if Anneheim will beat them or not.

I haven't posted because I don't want to rile anyone up......but here goes...

OH BABY!!!!!!!!!

[davevandyk]

I am loving the playoffs, haven't missed a Sens game and have watched most of the other games during the playoffs as well. The hockey fans on here seem to be more leaf fans than of hockey in general, when the leafs bow out, so does the hockey talk on this forum.

I predicted Ottawa/Anaheim from the outset, and still do although i would rather have the Sens face the Wings in the finals. I love the way the Sens are playing, they no longer rely only on their offense, they are playing team hockey, unreal defence and are learning to win UGLY. When you see guys like Spezza/Heatley/Alfie not only lighting up the lamp, but also throwing hits/blocking shots and back-checking, you know they have bought into the Murray approach.

I am cautiously optimistic, because i don't want to get ahead of myself, but i really like the Sens game right now, but to say i saw them being up 3-0 on Buffalo, and being 11-2 so far in the playoffs is a stretch, i thought they would face tougher opposition. Perhaps they are just playing that well, not that the other teams are playing crap.

Can;t wait to be in Scotiabank Place to see them win the CUP, as long as they finish Buffalo off

[el tigre]

Not too many hockey fans in Toronto - just Leaf fans!:D

The Sens have been pretty impressive and are getting better with each round. Everyone is committed to forechecking and team defence, Emery is playing great, and they've always had guys who could score. They're really playing with confidence now and it shows.

I think the Detroit-Anaheim series is going to get ugly. A lot of net-crashing - especially by Anaheim. I think the Ducks will prevail, and I wouldn't be surprised if we see a brawl in the next couple of games.

[Jeffc]

just wondering how many Leaf fans have jumped on the Ottawa bandwagon?

I have to say I am blown away by how well they are playing. It would finally appear that they are playing up to their potential, especially in the playoffs.

GO SENS GO!!!!!

[el tigre]

just wondering how many Leaf fans have jumped on the Ottawa bandwagon?
Well, I'm not holding my breath for that. But even if they were cheering "Go Sabres Go", we would know that they still had a pulse!

Canadians are supposed to be passionate about hockey. Toronto is still part of Canada, isn' it?;)

[nearace]

http://i161.photobucket.com/albums/t234/nocod/yhst-4637284245310_1947_4782548.gifdont count me out lmao.

[Flog]

I've missed seeing the Senator's very first real run at the cup because I was busy watching Team Canada win the WHC! 9 straight without a loss-- first time since 1935! There was some great hockey being played all right, but it was in Russia...
:rofl:

[Golden Bear]

Canadians are supposed to be passionate about hockey. Toronto is still part of Canada, isn' it?;)The rest of Canada doesn't have other big-league sports teams to watch, though. Toronto turned its eyes to the Raptors and Jays. Of course, then our eyes started to bleed.

Seriously, though ... there's plenty of hockey talk in Toronto. Maybe not on a board where Sens fans are going to pound their chests, but every pub I go to has good crowds watching the games, and there was a fair bit of excitement for the world championships over the weekend.

Other than that ... we've been working on our golf games. And boy are Sens fans going to be sorry when they see how good our short games are so early in the season.

[Jeffc]

I guess all I'm saying is that whoever isn't watching the playoffs is missing some great hockey. Heck I watch anyway regardless of whose playing and am even more engaged when a Canadian team is playing, such as Edmonton and Calgary the last two years. C'mon Leaf fans, there's lots of room on the wagon. Hop aboard!

[hogannut]

I am loving the playoffs, haven't missed a Sens game and have watched most of the other games during the playoffs as well. The hockey fans on here seem to be more leaf fans than of hockey in general, when the leafs bow out, so does the hockey talk on this forum.

I predicted Ottawa/Anaheim from the outset, and still do although i would rather have the Sens face the Wings in the finals. I love the way the Sens are playing, they no longer rely only on their offense, they are playing team hockey, unreal defence and are learning to win UGLY. When you see guys like Spezza/Heatley/Alfie not only lighting up the lamp, but also throwing hits/blocking shots and back-checking, you know they have bought into the Murray approach.

I am cautiously optimistic, because i don't want to get ahead of myself, but i really like the Sens game right now, but to say i saw them being up 3-0 on Buffalo, and being 11-2 so far in the playoffs is a stretch, i thought they would face tougher opposition. Perhaps they are just playing that well, not that the other teams are playing crap.

Can;t wait to be in Scotiabank Place to see them win the CUP, as long as they finish Buffalo off

I wouldn't be to quick to root for Detroit. IMO Detroit keeps raising their game in every series. They looked a little slow in the Calgary series and at the beginning of San Jose. I actually thought I'd be eating some crow with Golfbum as he and I exchanged some thoughts before the playoffs and I said San Jose wouldn't beat Detroit. Although they are old there are 12 Stanley cup rings in the Dtroit room. It would be VERY interesting to see Hasek playing in Ottawa for the other team though. You may hear Hasek chanting for 60 minutes!!

Not too many hockey fans in Toronto - just Leaf fans!:D

The Sens have been pretty impressive and are getting better with each round. Everyone is committed to forechecking and team defence, Emery is playing great, and they've always had guys who could score. They're really playing with confidence now and it shows.

I think the Detroit-Anaheim series is going to get ugly. A lot of net-crashing - especially by Anaheim. I think the Ducks will prevail, and I wouldn't be surprised if we see a brawl in the next couple of games.

Go to ANY Marlies game and it is obvious Toronto is a Leaf town, not a hockey town. When everyone complains about the latest increase in tickets prices you can attribute some of that increase to the fact the Marlies lost $4 million last year. Poor attendance. Supposedly tickets prices for the Marlies are being lowered next year to attract more people. They need to do something as the rink is 2/3's empty for every game.

[AnnikaFan]

i'm semi-watching.......Ive been busy watching basketball since Jazz are still in it..

Go Detroit...i guess....lesser of the 4 evils......it'll be hilarious when Todd Bertuzzi lifts the cup!

tho I don't have much against the other 3 teams..

Not cheering for Ottawa because I'm not Canadian..and Nation Pride in NHL really doesn't mean much to me compare to something like Olympics.....and I know that IF Sens win....then we'll never hear the end of it by the Canadian Media.........And...IF the Sens win the Cup...that'll leave the Nucks the only Canadian team that never won a cup....and I can just picture all the other canadian team fans trashtalk the nucks and their fans non-stop...

Not cheering for Buffalo cause they are Nucks' expansion brothers...and I don't want them to win one before the Nucks....and Lindy Ruff's recent behaviour/whine have been a turnoff...and Brier is a little B*tch

Not cheering for the Ducks cause they are dirty..and I don't want to see Pronger lifting a cup....

so that left with Detroit....not much to dislike there........well Hasek is not very likable..but I don't really mind him.......and Todd Bertuzzi have a chance to win a cup......that'll be hilarious as heck

[laxgolf]

I'll be the first to admit that the series isn't over yet and they could still make a series out of it, but I took ALOT of grief on different web boards from Sabres fans, and it all came back to the same things:


The Sabres are God's gift to hockey.
Sabres fans aren't even sure why the games are being played since Buffalo is SUCH a great team.
The Dynasties of the 70's and 80's have nothing on the Sabres.
Chuck Norris couldn't even beat the Sabres.
Alfredsson will choke.
Sabres will sweep or at most win in 5 because teh Sens might luck out one game.Did I expect Ottawa to be up 3-0 right now? Nope. Am I surprised? Not at all. Against the NYI and NYR the Sabres had been able to get by with minimal effort, meanwhile Ottawa was steamrolling through a couple of 100 point teams. Full marks to Ottawa for taking care of business the way they have.

[AnnikaFan]

yea..another reason why I'm not cheering for Sabres cause somehow they now became the NHL's golden team.....and all the bandwagon fans

tho I'll admit, they are pretty exciting to watch

[Golden Bear]

If I had to cheer for anyone it would be the Red Wings. As much as I despised the Wings in the 80s and 90s, I've gotten over that. I can't cheer for the Ducks because I have never been willing to acknowledge that a team called the Mighty Ducks exists. And the Sens and Sabres ... well, nothing really against them, other than their fans ;) , but when all other things are equal, I root for an Original Six team.

[laxgolf]

yea..another reason why I'm not cheering for Sabres cause somehow they now became the NHL's golden team.....and all the bandwagon fans

tho I'll admit, they are pretty exciting to watch

I'm certainly enjoying watching them!!! :rolleyes:

They look like a mediocre peewee house league team.

[Golden Bear]

Go to ANY Marlies game and it is obvious Toronto is a Leaf town, not a hockey town. When everyone complains about the latest increase in tickets prices you can attribute some of that increase to the fact the Marlies lost $4 million last year. Poor attendance. Supposedly tickets prices for the Marlies are being lowered next year to attract more people. They need to do something as the rink is 2/3's empty for every game.

I really don't buy that argument. If Toronto was not a "hockey town" it wouldn't be a "Leafs town". If people are only rooting for the team, and aren't really fans of the sport, interest in the team will wax and wane. You won't be able to maintain a large and devoted fanbase for decades on end if there isn't a devotion to the sport itself.

The Marlies don't do well and couldn't possibly be expected to do well -- I knew it was a mistake to bring them here, I knew the St. Mike's Majors were a mistake. But it's not because Toronto's not a hockey town, it's because Toronto simply doesn't have an appetite for minor league sports. Sports are entertainment, and there are far too many things competing for Torontonians' entertainment dollars. Big league things. Not just other major professional sports like NBA basketball and MLB baseball, but also music (various, from major rock acts appearing in Toronto on a regular basis to world-class opera and ballet companies), theatre, etc. The choice isn't "do I go to a Marlies game or do nothing", it's "do I go to a Marlies game or do I go to see Arrowsmith ... or whatever it is people are listening to these days. (I'm more a classical/opera fan, so I have no idea who draws the big crowds now!) OHL and AHL hockey are really looked down upon, to be honest. They're seen as rinky-dink, because the city has become accustomed to the elite leagues.

A minor-league baseball team couldn't thrive hear anymore like the old AAA Leafs did for a time, but there's a good solid fanbase for the Jays, who are hovering around last place but are still averaging a respectable 26000 fans per game. You'll have trouble chatting with locals about the CFL Argos, but Torontonians are all over the NFL, even without a team; and you won't find many people who can even tell you if the U of T Blues or York Lions have decent basketball teams, but the Raptors are huge (and before the Raptors, NBA had a passionate following in Toronto).

People don't watch the Marlies, because that would be "settling" for what is seen as an inferior product. It's not that people aren't passionate about hockey -- it's just that they're more passionate about elite-level sports, not the levels one or two steps beneath.

[el tigre]

The Marlies don't do well and couldn't possibly be expected to do well -- I knew it was a mistake to bring them here, I knew the St. Mike's Majors were a mistake. But it's not because Toronto's not a hockey town, it's because Toronto simply doesn't have an appetite for minor league sports. The Sens and the '67's both draw sellout crowds in a market half the size Toronto, and with the Gatineau Olympique on the Quebec side as well. They appeal to totally different markets.

Minor league teams are successful when they market to families. A family of four can't afford to see an NHL team more than once or twice a year (if that) - but they can afford a half dozen junior games easily. St-Mikes's and the Marlies aren't really competing against the Leafs - they're competing against the Oshawa Generals, Mississauga Ice Dogs, Brampton Battalion and Hamilton Bulldogs. Unfortunately for them, those teams are all in the suburbs - where all the families are.

When I lived in Burlington in the late '90's, tickets for the Bulldogs between the bluelines at the 100 level were $14 each (I'm sure its a little more now). I had no problem taking my family to a half dozen games a year, and the AHL is excellent hockey. I can barely afford to see the Sens once or twice a year now - and those seats are behind the net in the nosebleed section. There is really no comparison.

And...IF the Sens win the Cup...that'll leave the Nucks the only Canadian team that never won a cup....and I can just picture all the other canadian team fans trashtalk the nucks and their fans non-stop...
Actually, the Sens have won several Stanley Cups. Yeah, I know they were all in the 1920's, but they have the banners hanging in Scotiabank Place.

[AnnikaFan]

Actually, the Sens have won several Stanley Cups. Yeah, I know they were all in the 1920's, but they have the banners hanging in Scotiabank Place.

I believe it's a completely different team (who won like 10 cups)...I meant the actual NHL expansion team that came in in 92..

in that case, then the Vancouver won a cup too.......well, the Vancouver Millionaires

woot, detroit won! vicsious hit on Holmstrom by R. Nieds and Prongs..tsktsk

[noback]

Went to Home Hardware yesterday and bought a nice broom for tonihgt. :D

GO SENS GO:cool:

[leftintherough]

Canadians are supposed to be passionate about hockey. Toronto is still part of Canada, isn' it?;)

Technically its the centre of the universe ! :rofl: :rofl: :p :D

[guitarman]

just wondering how many Leaf fans have jumped on the Ottawa bandwagon?

I have to say I am blown away by how well they are playing. It would finally appear that they are playing up to their potential, especially in the playoffs.

GO SENS GO!!!!!

I dont' know if you can call it jumping on the bandwagon. If your a hockey fan its just the way it works. For me its: Leafs or Bruins. Once their both out then I pick the team I like to follow and would like to see do well in the playoffs. A team I would like never to win the playoffs is Buffalo. So right now Ottawa is making me very happy and I'm willing to forget the rivalry till next year. Of the teams left it would be great to see Ottawa win it.

[Flog]

I have 2 boys and one cheers for Buffalo while the other cheers for Ottawa. What's a guy supposed to do?
Go Red Wings....
:rolleyes:

[davevandyk]

I have 2 boys and one cheers for Buffalo while the other cheers for Ottawa. What's a guy supposed to do?
Go Red Wings....
:rolleyes:

You are supposed to do what any sensible father would do... cheer with your one "favourite" son for the Sens, and send the other son to "time-out" in the corner and let him think about what he has done :p

[hogannut]

Pronger really pulled a bonehead move last night. A veteran like that should know better and be able to say composed. If the Ducks lose it will be because of their inability to play disciplined when in a desperate situation. However a win in the next game for Annaheim could do a lot for their shattered confidence.

I think the loss of Schneider has actually helped Detroit. Chelios is playing inspired hockey and is really leading the team out there with the increase in ice time. Detroit gets better every game and Annaheim doesn't, or hasn't yet.

[Flog]

You are supposed to do what any sensible father would do... cheer with your one "favourite" son for the Sens, and send the other son to "time-out" in the corner and let him think about what he has done :p

I'll try that. :rofl:

[hogannut]

If that is the best Buffalo could do last night I think the next game in Ottawa will be against the western conference champ.

[guitarman]

If that is the best Buffalo could do last night I think the next game in Ottawa will be against the western conference champ.

I'm betting it will be over before it gets back to Ottawa.

[laxgolf]

If that is the best Buffalo could do last night I think the next game in Ottawa will be against the western conference champ.

I have to agree with this. Regardless of the final score, the Sens still outshot and outchanced the Sabres who are a team on the ropes. If the Sens show up for 60 minutes (and not 30 like last night), Buffalo's done.

[davevandyk]

If that is the best Buffalo could do last night I think the next game in Ottawa will be against the western conference champ.

i think the Sens just wanted me to be able to see them finish off the sabres, as i will be going to the game on Saturday

[hogannut]

I have to agree with this. Regardless of the final score, the Sens still outshot and outchanced the Sabres who are a team on the ropes. If the Sens show up for 60 minutes (and not 30 like last night), Buffalo's done.

They are to small to win the puck battles along the boards and Ottawa is just as fast, so what can you expect? I mean let's face it, the Islanders got burned big time on 2 disallowed goals, and the Rnagers were 7 seconds away from going back to MSG tied. Buffalo is this years Ottawa. Great regular season but can't step it up for the playoffs!:rolleyes:

Glad to hear they are raising the ticket prices for Leaf games this year. All 19000 seats will continue to sell though regardless of the fact the Leafs will be no better in 2007-08 than they were this year. I like Maurice but I am really struggling to think I am going to support another year of losers!:confused: :shhh:

[davevandyk]

They are to small to win the puck battles along the boards and Ottawa is just as fast, so what can you expect? I mean let's face it, the Islanders got burned big time on 2 disallowed goals, and the Rnagers were 7 seconds away from going back to MSG tied. Buffalo is this years Ottawa. Great regular season but can't step it up for the playoffs!:rolleyes:

Glad to hear they are raising the ticket prices for Leaf games this year. All 19000 seats will continue to sell though regardless of the fact the Leafs will be no better in 2007-08 than they were this year. I like Maurice but I am really struggling to think I am going to support another year of losers!:confused: :shhh:

welcome to the predicament that all leaf fans are in!

[hogannut]

Thoughts...ideas....opinions about tonight? Ottawa is going to have to play a lot better. Those defence are big and are going to continue to pound the big 3 every chance they get. If Ottawa can get around that they have a chance, if not the series could be over in 5 games with the team who the most Canadians on their team winning!!

Another thought as well. I think the ice is really bad there. The puck was bouncing all over the place. Maybe Ottawa isn't used to playing on really bad ice which apparently it is in Annaheim. Slow ice is an advantage for the bigger team IMO.

I remember skating on bad summer ice when I still played summer hockey and it is grueling, and we certainly didn't have 15000+ people in our rink watching.

[el tigre]

Ottawa can and will play better. Spezza in particular seemed to revert to his October form, with all his turnovers at the Anaheim blueline and coasting on the backcheck. Save the fancy plays for deep in the zone on the power play.

I thought the Fisher line played well in the first game, along with the Phillips/Volchenkov defence pairing. They and Emery were the only reason Ottawa even had a chance in the first game.

Anaheim is very strong on the boards. They shut down the chip out play to the neutral zone time and time again. The Ducks just keep dumping the puck in deep and then cutting off the boards on the clearout. The Sens forwards are going to have to come back more to give the defence more options in clearing the zone, and/or the defence are going to have to carry the puck up the middle more.

Should be a good game.

[hogannut]

The play of the Sens 3rd and 4th lines are the reason they are here. Yes the big 3 have performed well in both ends of the rink, but Ottawa's checking lines were better than Pittsburg's, Jersey's and BUffalo's checking lines, that's why they won the first 3 series.

[AnnikaFan]

GOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAALLLL LLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLL!!!!

by the ducks