2014-15 NHL Season thread

[Rhyta]

Just found out that Oduya was playing with a tear in his elbow...talk about guts...how do these guys do it? Just love how the Ducks said they couldn't stand up to their pounding..wrong! :laughing guy: :hockeygoon:

[satchmothesnowdog]

Just found out that Oduya was playing with a tear in his elbow...talk about guts...how do these guys do it? Just love how the Ducks said they couldn't stand up to their pounding..wrong! :laughing guy: :hockeygoon:

 

I had a lot of respect for Bishop the way he played because I never thought he was a top tier goalie before, until now. The dude played this series with a torn groin muscle that would have had him on the shelf minimum 4 weeks during the regular season, but he went out and played like a champion and only missed one game and one period. He's a beast. Same with Oduya. His team had 3 other guys to fill his shoes and one of them was old man Timonnen so he had to play, and Johnny played his heart out. Now I feel kinda bad for screaming at him a few times, though. I'm sure my tv will get over it, however :D

[blackhawkrush]

You gotta love Chicago's TV reporters. According to them, the Hawks won game 6 in a shootout and the GWG was scored by Keith Duncan. :laughing guy:

[RushCanuck]

You gotta love Chicago's TV reporters. According to them, the Hawks won game 6 in a shootout and the GWG was scored by Keith Duncan. :laughing guy:

Tuesday morning, the London radio stations were saying "former London Knight Patrick Kane helped the Hawks win". They always refer to NHLers as former Knights whenever they are able to around here.

[satchmothesnowdog]

You gotta love Chicago's TV reporters. According to them, the Hawks won game 6 in a shootout and the GWG was scored by Keith Duncan. :laughing guy:

You're f***ing kidding me

[ILSnwdog]

You gotta love Chicago's TV reporters. According to them, the Hawks won game 6 in a shootout and the GWG was scored by Keith Duncan. :laughing guy:

Who said that?

[ILSnwdog]

The worst thing about the Blackhawks winning the Stanley Cup is that we won't have playoff hockey for another 10 months.

[RushCanuck]

Sports Illustrated picks the Hawks to win it all.

They were right...

[blackhawkrush]

You gotta love Chicago's TV reporters. According to them, the Hawks won game 6 in a shootout and the GWG was scored by Keith Duncan. :laughing guy:

Who said that?

I don't know. I just heard the radio guys making fun of it yesterday. Would love to find out. ;)

[satchmothesnowdog]

You gotta love Chicago's TV reporters. According to them, the Hawks won game 6 in a shootout and the GWG was scored by Keith Duncan. :laughing guy:

Who said that?

I don't know. I just heard the radio guys making fun of it yesterday. Would love to find out. ;)

I guess that schmuck, Dan Bernstein made some shitty remark on twitter after the Hawks won and wasn't on air yesterday. I forgot to listen today, and my give a shit didn't register enough to turn on the Score today. I'm curious what he said, though.

[blackhawkrush]

You gotta love Chicago's TV reporters. According to them, the Hawks won game 6 in a shootout and the GWG was scored by Keith Duncan. :laughing guy:

Who said that?

I don't know. I just heard the radio guys making fun of it yesterday. Would love to find out. ;)

I guess that schmuck, Dan Bernstein made some shitty remark on twitter after the Hawks won and wasn't on air yesterday. I forgot to listen today, and my give a shit didn't register enough to turn on the Score today. I'm curious what he said, though.

Yeah, I was listening to the Score yesterday and I think it was in fact Bernstein who mentioned those mistakes. You gotta feel sorry for that hockey hater, though. He's got a wife and kid that are just crazy about the Hawks. :P

[satchmothesnowdog]

http://sportsmockery.com/2015/06/report-patrick-sharp-to-be-traded-next-week/

 

 

I'm not so broken up by this news as I would be with so many other players. He's older and in decline.

[laughedatbytime]

http://sportsmockery...aded-next-week/

 

 

I'm not so broken up by this news as I would be with so many other players. He's older and in decline.

Branch Rickey always said it's better to trade a player one year too early rather than one year too late.

[blackhawkrush]

http://sportsmockery...aded-next-week/

 

 

I'm not so broken up by this news as I would be with so many other players. He's older and in decline.

Branch Rickey always said it's better to trade a player one year too early rather than one year too late.

I'm thinking it's Panarin time now.

[Rhyta]

http://sportsmockery...aded-next-week/

 

 

I'm not so broken up by this news as I would be with so many other players. He's older and in decline.

Branch Rickey always said it's better to trade a player one year too early rather than one year too late.

 

This makes me sad and mad at the same time. I think Sharp has been a great asset to the team and has been there for all 3 Cups. He did have a slump this year but I disagree he is in decline...hope this isn't true but if so he gets a good deal. He has been a great team player and did lots of community service for the team. So I say don't do it. :o

[blackhawkrush]

http://sportsmockery...aded-next-week/

 

 

I'm not so broken up by this news as I would be with so many other players. He's older and in decline.

Branch Rickey always said it's better to trade a player one year too early rather than one year too late.

 

This makes me sad and mad at the same time. I think Sharp has been a great asset to the team and has been there for all 3 Cups. He did have a slump this year but I disagree he is in decline...hope this isn't true but if so he gets a good deal. He has been a great team player and did lots of community service for the team. So I say don't do it. :o

His $5.7 mill. cap hit says otherwise. Unless he decides to go the Richards route and take less money going forward, I'm afraid this is the end. Thanks for all the memories, Sharpie!

[Xanadu]

http://sportsmockery...aded-next-week/

 

 

I'm not so broken up by this news as I would be with so many other players. He's older and in decline.

Branch Rickey always said it's better to trade a player one year too early rather than one year too late.

 

This makes me sad and mad at the same time. I think Sharp has been a great asset to the team and has been there for all 3 Cups. He did have a slump this year but I disagree he is in decline...hope this isn't true but if so he gets a good deal. He has been a great team player and did lots of community service for the team. So I say don't do it. :o

His $5.7 mill. cap hit says otherwise. Unless he decides to go the Richards route and take less money going forward, I'm afraid this is the end. Thanks for all the memories, Sharpie!

 

Time to convert my #10 Sharp jersey to the #27 Roenick jersey I knew I should have gotten in the first place.

[satchmothesnowdog]

http://sportsmockery...aded-next-week/

 

 

I'm not so broken up by this news as I would be with so many other players. He's older and in decline.

Branch Rickey always said it's better to trade a player one year too early rather than one year too late.

I'm thinking it's Panarin time now.

oh hell yeah :)

[laughedatbytime]

Dud of a final?

 

Well, that post-season was underwhelming. Come to think of it, so was the regular season. At 5.03 and 5.32 goals per game, respectively, the two parts of 2014-15 combined to create another low-scoring season for goal-starved fans

 

Immediately after that dud of a Stanley Cup final, in which just 23 goals (3.83 per game) were scored, suggestions started flying on ways to fix the dearth of goals and the downtick in excitement. TSN’s Dave Naylor threw his support behind making the nets bigger, a move the NHL should embrace.

 

Failing that, however, perhaps there’s another way to boost scoring.

 

Prior to the playoffs, this editor floated an idea by Kris King, vice-president of hockey operations, and Stephen Walkom, senior vice-president and director of officiating, at the NHL. Neither offered any feedback, but at least they were willing to hear it out.

 

“We have a lot of ‘interesting’ GMs,” King said. “So your idea might not be as crazy as you think.”

 

That crazy idea targets the suffocating defensive strategies of coaches – the real culprits behind low-scoring games – by making this rule change:

 

Move the icing line back for each team to its own blue line.

 

As the rule stands now, teams on offense have to navigate a 25-foot minefield of defenders between the red line and the blue line to get into the offensive zone. That compressed space is critical, because teams on offense have to negate an icing while avoiding an offside – all within one-eighth of the length of the ice. And coaches are exploiting that space defensively.

 

Teams on defense only need to defend the 25 feet between the red line and their own blue line. Under this new icing rule, however, they would have to cover the entire 50 feet of the neutral zone.

 

icing

 

Now, many of you are probably thinking, “Wouldn’t this just turn the NHL into a back-and-forth dump-and-chase game?”

 

Why would it?

 

Just because the option is there to dump the puck in earlier doesn’t mean teams on offense would use it, but the option alone would still force teams on defense to defend against it.

 

As the icing rule is now, defensive formations are set up width-wise. To maintain puck possession through the neutral zone, teams on offense have to beat as many as five defenders lined up across the rink in the 25 feet between the red line and the offensive blue line.

 

Setting icing at each team’s own blue line would stretch defensive formations length-wise, forcing teams on defense to guard the entire 50-foot neutral zone. This would increase the chances of getting through those formations and into the offensive zone.

 

“If I perceive the concept correctly, I could see in principle that your proposal might generate the potential for increased and sustained pressure both inside the attacking blue line and on the forecheck,” said former NHL referee Kerry Fraser via email. “It might also open up the neutral zone for quick transition and stretch passes.”

 

With a more open neutral zone, teams on offense would be more likely to carry the puck through it. Thanks to analytics like SAT and USAT, statistics strongly suggest puck possession is a huge part of what makes a successful team, and moving the icing line would only favor clubs that hold onto the puck. And even if defending teams dropped a player back into their own zone to defend against a long dump-in, it’d leave one less defender in the neutral zone to clog it up.

 

This rule change isn’t without precedent. The World Hockey Association experimented with it for power plays by making shorthanded teams cross their own blue line to negate an icing.

 

And it isn’t the first time someone suggested the NHL set icing at the blue lines. A Google search revealed that a THN reader – Kevin Cave from Victoria, B.C. – had made this suggestion back in 2008.

 

Changing the icing rule works in theory, so it’s worth putting it into practice by testing it in the minor leagues or at an R&D camp. That being said, neither is likely to happen in a league that seems content with the goal-starved status quo.

 

“Moving the icing line would be a major change in the slow-moving minds of Hockey Ops and most team GMs,” Fraser said. “I could be wrong, but my guess is they would view moving the icing line as a radical change.”

 

http://www.thehockeynews.com/blog/this-radical-rule-change-would-increase-scoring-in-the-nhl/

[blackhawkrush]

Dud of a final?

 

Well, that post-season was underwhelming. Come to think of it, so was the regular season. At 5.03 and 5.32 goals per game, respectively, the two parts of 2014-15 combined to create another low-scoring season for goal-starved fans

 

Immediately after that dud of a Stanley Cup final, in which just 23 goals (3.83 per game) were scored, suggestions started flying on ways to fix the dearth of goals and the downtick in excitement. TSN’s Dave Naylor threw his support behind making the nets bigger, a move the NHL should embrace.

 

Failing that, however, perhaps there’s another way to boost scoring.

 

Prior to the playoffs, this editor floated an idea by Kris King, vice-president of hockey operations, and Stephen Walkom, senior vice-president and director of officiating, at the NHL. Neither offered any feedback, but at least they were willing to hear it out.

 

“We have a lot of ‘interesting’ GMs,” King said. “So your idea might not be as crazy as you think.”

 

That crazy idea targets the suffocating defensive strategies of coaches – the real culprits behind low-scoring games – by making this rule change:

 

Move the icing line back for each team to its own blue line.

 

As the rule stands now, teams on offense have to navigate a 25-foot minefield of defenders between the red line and the blue line to get into the offensive zone. That compressed space is critical, because teams on offense have to negate an icing while avoiding an offside – all within one-eighth of the length of the ice. And coaches are exploiting that space defensively.

 

Teams on defense only need to defend the 25 feet between the red line and their own blue line. Under this new icing rule, however, they would have to cover the entire 50 feet of the neutral zone.

 

icing

 

Now, many of you are probably thinking, “Wouldn’t this just turn the NHL into a back-and-forth dump-and-chase game?”

 

Why would it?

 

Just because the option is there to dump the puck in earlier doesn’t mean teams on offense would use it, but the option alone would still force teams on defense to defend against it.

 

As the icing rule is now, defensive formations are set up width-wise. To maintain puck possession through the neutral zone, teams on offense have to beat as many as five defenders lined up across the rink in the 25 feet between the red line and the offensive blue line.

 

Setting icing at each team’s own blue line would stretch defensive formations length-wise, forcing teams on defense to guard the entire 50-foot neutral zone. This would increase the chances of getting through those formations and into the offensive zone.

 

“If I perceive the concept correctly, I could see in principle that your proposal might generate the potential for increased and sustained pressure both inside the attacking blue line and on the forecheck,” said former NHL referee Kerry Fraser via email. “It might also open up the neutral zone for quick transition and stretch passes.”

 

With a more open neutral zone, teams on offense would be more likely to carry the puck through it. Thanks to analytics like SAT and USAT, statistics strongly suggest puck possession is a huge part of what makes a successful team, and moving the icing line would only favor clubs that hold onto the puck. And even if defending teams dropped a player back into their own zone to defend against a long dump-in, it’d leave one less defender in the neutral zone to clog it up.

 

This rule change isn’t without precedent. The World Hockey Association experimented with it for power plays by making shorthanded teams cross their own blue line to negate an icing.

 

And it isn’t the first time someone suggested the NHL set icing at the blue lines. A Google search revealed that a THN reader – Kevin Cave from Victoria, B.C. – had made this suggestion back in 2008.

 

Changing the icing rule works in theory, so it’s worth putting it into practice by testing it in the minor leagues or at an R&D camp. That being said, neither is likely to happen in a league that seems content with the goal-starved status quo.

 

“Moving the icing line would be a major change in the slow-moving minds of Hockey Ops and most team GMs,” Fraser said. “I could be wrong, but my guess is they would view moving the icing line as a radical change.”

 

http://www.thehockey...ing-in-the-nhl/

Why don't they just bring in soccer-size goals and be done with it? :eyeroll:

[BearFan]

More goals <> Better Hockey ... like more goals/points/runs do not make other sports better either. Close games with drama and good play make it better. baseball is not suffering with less HRs recently.

 

As for Sharp, I wish they could keep him, but they cannot. The Hawks need the cap room, and despite the last few games, he is a 3rd line winger on this team. A new team and a more prominent role might help Sharp out. It is the only move for the Hawks and probably a good move for Sharp's career. He has some good years left.

 

Versteeg and Bickell should be right behind

 

They have to resign Saad, they should resign Kruger (unless he gets some insane offer sheet), they should try to resign Dejardines (at a low cap hit) and it would be nice if they could resign Richards (ideally Vermette, but he will probably want too much)

 

Oduya probably goes as well, unless he is willing to resign on the cheap .. which is too bad

[laughedatbytime]

More goals <> Better Hockey ... like more goals/points/runs do not make other sports better either. Close games with drama and good play make it better. baseball is not suffering with less HRs recently.

 

As for Sharp, I wish they could keep him, but they cannot. The Hawks need the cap room, and despite the last few games, he is a 3rd line winger on this team. A new team and a more prominent role might help Sharp out. It is the only move for the Hawks and probably a good move for Sharp's career. He has some good years left.

 

Versteeg and Bickell should be right behind

 

They have to resign Saad, they should resign Kruger (unless he gets some insane offer sheet), they should try to resign Dejardines (at a low cap hit) and it would be nice if they could resign Richards (ideally Vermette, but he will probably want too much)

 

Oduya probably goes as well, unless he is willing to resign on the cheap .. which is too bad

Given the scroll at the bottom of the screen, I don't think the Hawks are going to have any trouble attracting free agents. :)

 

http://sportsmockery.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/06/Blackhawks.gif

[BearFan]

I think plenty will want to come play for them .. but it is a matter of finding those willing to leave a fair amount of money on the table. If they sign Kruger, they are still down 2 centers, and they need at least 1 vet blue liner without much money to spend. Dropping Bickell drops a decent physical presence which would be nice to at least partially replace .. though that could be somewhat offset by keeping Shaw on the wing .. if they do not need him at center

 

I suppose Teuvo could be one center, but he might be better served playing wing for another season

[BearFan]

Sweet, the first of several shipments. Lot's of red and black t-shirts in my collection now :)

 

Men's Reebok Graphite Chicago Blackhawks 2015 Stanley Cup Champions Locker Room Elite T-Shirt

has shipped!

[laughedatbytime]

Cups and winners through the years...

 

http://www.thehockeynews.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/2015/06/Stanley-Cup-jerseys-large.png