2014-2015 NHL Thread

[TheLionKing]

That 2 day rest caught up with the Rangers just as it did to the Canucks a few years back.

[BC 1988]

Thought I heard something in CBC's pre-game show that NYR had never lost a Game 7 when playing at home. In their entire almost 90-year franchise history. Didn't catch (if they mentioned it at all) how many such wins were in that streak, although they had won something like all six or seven of their most recent Game 7s overall, whether home or road. Granted a lot of series in their early years were never best-of-7 anyway, but still kind of a surprising stat for an Original Six team; sure, you'd expect more wins than losses in those circumstances but you'd think there would be a loss in there somewhere through all those years. But maybe they simply just haven't played very many of those Game 7s and "law of averages" finally caught up to the franchise tonight.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_Ne ... rs_seasons
The law of averages did catch up to them. The other significant stat was Lundqvist missed the chance to be all alone in the record book with 7 game 7 wins. (He's still tied at 6 with Martin Brodeur and Patrick Roy.)

For a 25 year period starting in '42, NYR were extremely bad with many Did Not Qualify seasons. Gump Worsley's late '50's quote came from the midst of that period. He was asked by a reporter which team gave him the most problems. He replied "the Rangers" (his own team at the time).
http://thenhlarena.com/topic/131868-20- ... y-history/

Along with the DNQ seasons there were very few playoff appearances when they would have been in a position to host a game 7 (eg. as a lower seed it would have taken place on the road).

1967 expansion proved a blessing to Ranger fans, there were no more DNQ seasons until '75-77, then '92-93. The wasteland of '97-04 was mercifully interrupted up by the lockout.

[Toppy Vann]

TB were the better team but what I don't like about NHL size rinks is just that. No space and TB stacked the back and did a great job smothering any attack.

I love the bigger ice surfaces as it changes the game and there's more space.

The big stat I heard on the US broadcast was the team that if the score was tied going to the 3rd, the team that scored first in the 3rd won 117 versus 42 times for the other team.

[TheLionKing]

Chicago will the West's representative in the Stanley Cup after defeating Anaheim 5-3 in game 7

[sj-roc]

Chicago will the West's representative in the Stanley Cup after defeating Anaheim 5-3 in game 7

The goal off Hossa's skate to make it 4-0 was killer. CBC crew thought it would be disallowed but it stood — technically there was no "distinct kicking motion" as the phrase in the rule goes. The goal scorer gets the benefit of the doubt with that rule as it has to clearly be kicked — which wasn't the case here — though there's little doubt that it was redirected on goal with his skate, which the rule allows.

Tampa will face their 4th Original Six team in these playoffs after dispatching Detroit, Montreal and NY Rangers; an NHL first.

[WestCoastJoe]

Jonathan Toews. Best player in hockey. Best leader. They could just about name the Selke after him. Best skater. Best balance. Best vision. Best on the boards. Best protecting the puck. Best Canadian shootout player. Best instincts. Best intangibles. He has dispatched a lot of teams in his relatively short career.

I don't like the Blackhawks. LOL

But like Toews said: "We don't think we are an easy team to get rid of."

Does Tampa have a chance? Well, Stamkos ain't too bad either. Even if he his Dad cut him from the hockey team. Ha ha ...

[BC 1988]

After such an entertaining 6 games, it was disappointing to see ANA spend most of Game 7 reacting to CHI, instead of dictating play. Toews does what he does, and the Ducks were done. CHI might as well have been playing at home, with the number of Hawks jerseys in the stands, and Boudreau unable to use his line-change advantage effectively. Andersen folded under the pressure with 21/26 shots/saves .808 SV% (The first signs of this were back in Game 5). The final nail was Seabrooke scoring at will on the PP 35 seconds after Fowler's careless Hooking penalty.

ANA are going to get a reputation as choke artists, with another Game 7 loss at home. (Getting Kesler this year did help them play with more heart this season, but he can't carry them on his back like Toews can.)

The Hockey News picked TBL to win the Cup in late March. I'd like to see that happen, they are fun to watch, but momentum favors CHI now. (Even with their depleted D. There is a lot more time between games for recovery, so that is in their favor).

[BC 1988]

TB were the better team but what I don't like about NHL size rinks is just that. No space and TB stacked the back and did a great job smothering any attack.

Don Cherry did a bit about that last night. He showed clips of TB putting the wall up against the Rangers on Friday, and a clip of BOS doing the same thing to TB 1-0 in the 3rd period of game 7 in the 2011 East Final.

[BC 1988]

TBL prevail but of course refuse to touch the Prince of Wales Conference Championship trophy.

One of these years a team will win the Stanley Cup but everyone will refuse to touch it because that would be a jinx on them for *next* year's playoffs.

LOL... yes.. that is the problem why teams don't repeat. They touch the trophy. Take the extra cash etc... celebrate. That logic is why they don't touch their division trophies, etc so you are on to something for further research.

Stamkos did the standard keep a 2' distance from the trophy pic, while the rest of the team stayed as far away as they could. I liked how last night Toews motioned to his teammates to head over and take the group pic surrounding Daley and the Clarence S. Campbell Bowl. Of course, no one touched it again, but to me it was a more respectful way to behave. Maybe this is the start of a new trend.

https://ca.sports.yahoo.com/video/black ... 20746.html

[sj-roc]

TBL prevail but of course refuse to touch the Prince of Wales Conference Championship trophy.

One of these years a team will win the Stanley Cup but everyone will refuse to touch it because that would be a jinx on them for *next* year's playoffs.

LOL... yes.. that is the problem why teams don't repeat. They touch the trophy. Take the extra cash etc... celebrate. That logic is why they don't touch their division trophies, etc so you are on to something for further research.

Stamkos did the standard keep a 2' distance from the trophy pic, while the rest of the team stayed as far away as they could. I liked how last night Toews motioned to his teammates to head over and take the group pic surrounding Daley and the Clarence S. Campbell Bowl. Of course, no one touched it again, but to me it was a more respectful way to behave. Maybe this is the start of a new trend.

https://ca.sports.yahoo.com/video/black ... 20746.html

The Bruins in 2013 (see photo within link below) and Devils in 2003 did the same thing so there is precedent but it might have happened even earlier again; I don't recall.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/NHL_Conference_Finals

Conference trophy traditions

Another tradition (or rather superstition) that is prevalent among today's NHL players is that no player should touch the Cup itself until his team has rightfully won the Cup. Adding to this superstition is some players' choice to neither touch nor hoist the conference trophies (Clarence S. Campbell Bowl and Prince of Wales Trophy) when these series have been won; the players feel that the Stanley Cup is the true championship trophy, and only it should be hoisted.

However, in 1994, Stephane Matteau, then of the New York Rangers, admitted that he tapped the Wales Trophy with his stick's blade before the overtime period in Game 7 of the Eastern Conference Finals. Matteau subsequently scored the game-winning goal in double overtime against the New Jersey Devils. Following the game, Mark Messier, the captain of the Rangers, picked up and raised the Wales Trophy after it was awarded to the team. After winning the Western Conference, Vancouver Canucks captain Trevor Linden lifted the Campbell trophy. The Rangers prevailed over the Canucks in a seven game series to win the Cup.

Scott Stevens and Martin Brodeur hoisted the conference trophy as well in 2000, after the New Jersey Devils came back from a 3-1 series deficit to defeat the Philadelphia Flyers in seven games; the Devils would go on to defeat the Dallas Stars (who touched but did not lift their conference trophy) in the Stanley Cup Finals. Stevens then also touched the trophy in 2003, after defeating the Ottawa Senators in seven games. Not only touching, Stevens picked up the trophy and made his team take a photo with it. The Devils went on to defeat the Mighty Ducks of Anaheim four games to three in the 2003 Stanley Cup Finals.

In 2002 the Carolina Hurricanes hoisted the Prince of Wales Trophy after they won their conference title; the Hurricanes lost their Finals series with the Detroit Red Wings four games to one. Steve Yzerman, captain of the Detroit Red Wings during their 1997, 1998, and 2002 Stanley Cup victories, picked up the Clarence S. Campbell Bowl each time, to the delight of the home fans in Joe Louis Arena.

The superstition held true in 2004, as Jarome Iginla of the Calgary Flames grabbed the Campbell Bowl, but Dave Andreychuk of the Tampa Bay Lightning refused to touch the Prince of Wales Trophy; the Lightning won the Stanley Cup in seven games. In 2007, Daniel Alfredsson and Wade Redden of the Ottawa Senators touched and picked up the Prince of Wales Trophy, respectively, but Anaheim Ducks captain Scott Niedermayer never came close to the Campbell Bowl; the Ducks won the Stanley Cup in five games. Steve Yzerman, captain of the Detroit Red Wings during their 1997, 1998, and 2002 Stanley Cup victories, picked up the Clarence S. Campbell Bowl each time, though his successor Nicklas Lidstrom did not touch it en route to a 2008 Stanley Cup victory. Scott Stevens hoisted the Prince of Wales Trophy during the Devils' other two Stanley Cup-winning seasons in 1995 and 2003. In 2009, Sidney Crosby and other members of the Pittsburgh Penguins carried and posed with the Prince of Wales Trophy before going on to win the Stanley Cup. At the close of the 2010 Eastern Conference final, Philadelphia Flyers captain Mike Richards picked up the Wales Trophy. Jonathan Toews, Chicago Blackhawks captain, did not touch the Campbell Bowl, and the Blackhawks went on to defeat the Flyers in 6 games for the 2010 Stanley Cup.

In 2012, Los Angeles Kings captain Dustin Brown and the rest of the team refused to touch the Campbell Bowl after winning the conference finals against Phoenix Coyotes. The team did not even take the Campbell Bowl Trophy on the plane back to Los Angeles. Instead Tim Leiweke, President and CEO of Anschutz Entertainment Group (the parent of the LA Kings), drove the trophy in his car trunk from Phoenix to Los Angeles and showed it to the 10 000+ fans that waited at LAX Airport to show their support to their Stanley Cup finalists, who went on to win the Stanley Cup. This was in marked contrast to 1993, when the Kings had defeated the Toronto Maple Leafs in seven games to reach their first Final, where Wayne Gretzky and the team celebrated with the Campbell Bowl, and during the Finals trophy was unveiled before the start of Game Three (the Kings lost the series in five games, including three overtime losses).

One wonders if these conference trophies will get retired. What's the point of having them if players refuse to accept them? It's pretty telling that even the trophy presenter — usually someone like Bill Daly, slightly below Bettman on the chain of command — doesn't bother touching the trophy, either. This is in contrast to the Cup which Bettman generally picks up and hands over to the winning captain: a moment that is photographed for posterity. This doesn't happen with CF trophies because you'd only get the unsightly optics of Daly or whoever sheepishly putting it back on the table most of the time. Not sure if the league is growing weary of this but if they fined or otherwise disciplined teams for refusing to accept it, drawing attention to it in this fashion would only make matters worse IMHO.

One notable exception to the Bettman-hands-over-the-Cup protocol occurred in 2006 when Carolina Hurricanes captain Rod Brind'Amour was the recipient. Cue ahead to 1:59 in the video below. He foreshadows his actions by arriving early to the trophy table as we're still hearing the usual chorus of platitudes from GB, who scolds RB — "I'm almost done!" — and rushes to finish his speech. He barely even touches the Cup before Brind'Amour just snatches it up off the table and starts celebrating.

[video][/video]

[Robbie]

Just like how in football a particular touchdown or field goal may be extremely memorable, but the actual player who scored the touchdown/field goal may not be very memorable, famous, or popular at all (Raymond Ethridge, Duncan O'Mahony) - the same thing happens with hockey for sure. It was exactly four years ago on June 1, 2011 that the Canucks scored one of the most famous and memorable goals in history - but the goal scorer himself is hardly remembered as one of the best or memorable Canucks.

[video][/video]

So it's Chicago Blackhawks vs. Tampa Bay Lightning. Which team will you root for? I would you're probably neutral since both the Ducks and Rangers than contained a more popular Canucks are both eliminated.

[TheLionKing]

Chicago draws first blood with a 2-1 win over Tampa Bay in the finals. Two goals in a 2 minute span did the damage.

[BC 1988]

Chicago draws first blood with a 2-1 win over Tampa Bay in the finals. Two goals in a 2 minute span did the damage.

Bishop 19-21 Saves/Shots SV % .905
Crawford 20-21 Saves/Shots SV % .957
I saw the Sportsnet "Bishop shutout minutes" counter appear in the upper right screen mid-third period and said to my friend, "that's a sure-fire way to improve the Hawks chances". You could see the frustration building with them. Not surprising it was a rookie and a rental player who made the difference.
This loss could be very costly for the Lightning--they had them where they wanted them, and let it slip away.

[BC 1988]

Game 2 Stanley Cup Final: Tampa Bay 4 Chicago 3. Series tied 1-1 going to CHI for game 3 Wednesday.

TB decided they weren't going to try to nurse a 1 goal lead this time, and the result was a wild game with lots of scoring opportunities. There was even a strange incident involving Ben Bishop that had Coach Jon Cooper invoking a ban on discussion of the cause of it. Bishop pulled himself out of the game shortly after surrendering the 3-3 Seabrook tie goal (which was itself controversial due to alleged goalie interference) and went straight to the dressing room. He rushed back out a few minutes later but not before the Lightning scored the winning PP goal by Jason Garrison. TB backup rookie Andrei Vasilevskiy (making only his 2nd career playoff appearance) was in net for the GWG and stood to be the winning goalie with no shots/saves. Bishop played another 5 minutes, then pulled himself out again and headed back to the dressing room. He did not reappear to speak to the media or celebrate the win with his teammates. Vasilevskiy earned the win this time, stopping all 5 shots he faced in the final 7 minutes (including 2 excellent stops while SH).

It was an uncharacteristic poor performance by Patrick Sharp, he took Slashing and Hi-sticking (resulting in the GWG) penalties in the 3rd period.

During the broadcast the speculation as to the cause of Bishop's exits was bathroom discomfort or illness (Roberto Luongo tweeted about his own adventure during OT of the 2007 semi-final game vs Anaheim)
https://twitter.com/strombone1
Strombone ‏@strombone1 12h12 hours ago
Must be diarrhea..... #expertanalasys
6:48 PM - 6 Jun 2015 · Details
This was denied by his teammates. Kelly Hrudey showed video of the most likely cause, an apparent right knee injury, (but only noticeable when he was in the crouching or kneeling stance). The only information given by the team is Bishop not available to media because of "treatment."
http://bleacherreport.com/articles/2488 ... and-return

[BC 1988]

The latest word on Bishop is he's being assessed now at the morning skate as to whether he will play tonight in game 3. Since he isn't showing any obvious limping, he's likely wearing a knee brace. I wouldn't be surprised if it's revealed (when the playoffs are over) that this is an injury he's been playing with for awhile, and it flared up during game 2.

Jon Cooper has a good sense of humor, evoking his predecessor, John Tortorella.