RedFX

I was in 4th grade when the Preds first formed. Before the season started, Greg Johnson and Blair Atcheynum (blast from the past I know) were putting on a kid's hockey clinic at the YMCA. I, of course, was a shy little lad and just played hockey and that was that. My die-hard Wings fan mom, on the other hand, recognized Johnson in the parking lot. And in the most embarrassing way possible, screamed WOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO GGRREEEEEEEEEGGGGGGGGGGGGG JJJJJOOOHHHHHHHNNNNNNSSSSSSSSSSSOOOOOOOOOON!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! loud enough so the entire city of Franklin could hear... Good Times

Per ESPN Islanders trade Defense prospect Jyri Niemi to the Rangers for a 6th Round Pick...making it the first time since 1972 (when NYR Ron Stewart was traded to NYI) that the two arch-rivals have traded with one another.

Okay, we know the situation with these two teams. One one hand, you have the Blackhawks: The blood-sworn enemy of the Wings. The team that our former pal Marian Hossa spurned us for. And whose fans aren't exactly keen on containing their feelings for our franchise and our city. On the other hand, you have the Philadelphia Flyers: Home of such classy individuals as Daniel Carcillo, Scott Hartnell, and ****** McBag (Chris Pronger). And whose fans.....we'll....you know. So for many like me, at first glance these Finals appear to be a gag-fest. And no matter who ends up winning it all, many will walk away with the sickly feeling of seeing someone like Pronger or Hossa lifting the Cup. But despite everything I've ever been taught as a hockey fan, I can't help feeling content about this matchup. For me, both teams have shown they deserve to be here, and they deserve to win it all. And on a personal level, I respect what each team has done to get here. The Flyers road here is well documented. For them to put up a big performance on the last day of season just to QUALIFY for the playoffs is a big enough deal. But this year may go down as one of the most storied playoff performances in NHL history. The story in the Boston series will do that alone, but before that, they manhandled the Division Champions, and then dominated another upstart team in the Conference Finals. All this despite losing their starting goalie, leading scorer, and top penalty-kill man for most of the playoffs. For the Blackhawks, they way the organization has rebuilt both on and off the ice keeps reminding me of another down on it's luck Original Six team in the Late 80's to Mid 90's....Everyone mentions throwing money at Hossa and Campbell. But when you look at the majority of the team's talent, they've been grown and brought up within the organization: both the marquee picks like Kane and Toews, but also later picks like Byufuglein, Bolland, Brouwer, etc. We all know that the Sharks have had a bad history of playoff collapses in the past. But they were still a top-tier team, and for the Hawks to be that dominant against them in the Conference Finals is extremely impressive. So overall, I, like many others here, will probably die a little inside if I see Pronger lifting another cup or a lifelong hated franchise finally revive itself. But I think while a lot us dislike much of these two teams, I think each still deserve respect for what they've done to get to this point.

You know what else would slow the Flyers down? Getting more than one shot on goal per period

The purpose of the draft lottery is to ward off teams from intentionally tanking. Yes, the worst team gets the best shot at the number 1 pick. But they're not guaranteed a top pick. It seems like the lottery is what keeps teams from tanking. And there's also no guarantee that the players you draft will ever work out

I would not be overly shocked if the Flyers win the Stanley Cup

Here's the problem with a multi-year deal. Before this year, he started picking up alot of injuries and saw his numbers and ice time started to gradually fall. So the question is does Homer still have anything left in the tank? Or was this just one lucky year of staying healthy and being a top line contributor?

It's not like the Sharks just absolutely sucked the entire postseason. They played 2 solid series and were still the conference's best team during the regular season, so it's not like they're miles and miles away from winning a championship. It's obvious there are still pieces missing, but at the same time, they don't need to completely dismantle the team. Even though he doesn't wear the 'C' anymore, I still think Marleau is the emotional leader of this team, and I think that's the one guy they keep. And although none of the playoff collapses could really be blamed on him, I think you let Nabby go and either a. give Greiss the reigns, or b. try to get a Marty Turco. We all know Jumbo Joe doesn't appear to be shaking the playoff curse anytime soon. But realistically you'd have to think that not many teams would pull the trigger on a trade for him. So I think he's back for another season. As is Heatley.

I was at that game. I just imagined what I would do if THAT ended up being the deciding chance.

Not the craziest roster I've seen. However, I just don't see Kenny swapping out Bertuzzi (think he'll be back) with a player like Afinogenov. I think he keeps Bertuzzi and loses one of either Eaves or Miller.

From ESPN Interesting statements. He actually had a few good points in there

As a rookie, he handled the pressure of this season well. It's really not often you'll see a veteran team pin a large majority of a season's fate on a rookie goaltender. And I thought for the most part he handled it well. But now the key question is if he can do it consistently on a season-to-season basis.

I think this year he's shown that as long as he stays healthy, he's still a solid power forward with a little bit of a scoring touch. I wouldn't be opposed to having him back, as long as he doesn't ask for a massive increase in salary. Obviously age and health are going to be big concerns with him this year, so I think you would need to bring back an Eaves/Miller for depth.

It's wong to make those kinds of statements. We need to make this wight.

Both Eaves and Miller have earned their spots for next season. That being said, the fate of both guys really relies on what else happens this offseason...both personnel and cap-wise. Lidstrom could take some sort of a paycut, but not a substantial one like for 2 million a year. I think same goes for Holmstrom. You'd also had to figure Bertuzzi would come back at around the same salary or maybe a slight payraise.

One sec........ Okay Now /end thread

Not to mention he's the one that but the bounty on Steve Moore

MAKE I HAPPEN KENNY DAVE!!!!!

Per Freep. Sounds like Sweden isn't happy about it, but ladies and gentleman........let the mule countdown begin

This is clearly Bettman's fault

According to ESPN LA and Philly look like the top 2. Boston, New Jersey, and Vancouver have all taken themselves out of the running for now. EDIT: Link EDIT 2: Accroding the link it says New Jersey is still in it. Another source said NJ is out of it due to a steep price tag

I thought we had tomorrow off

f*** Nashville