GMRwings1983

I remember how 15 years ago, countries like Sweden and Finland lacked solid goaltending to compete on the international stage against the top hockey countries. Nowadays, that's no longer the case. The junior tournament is the most competitive tournament as it seems like a different powerhouse wins it every year.

Arguably? I don't think it's arguable. He finished top 5 in scoring again despite having a terrible start to the year. Kane is just now joining the party. Crosby has been in the Hart trophy and Art Ross discussion for years. Doing it year after year is what makes someone the best.

Yep. Neither did Howe or Messier. Last I checked, Crosby is top 5 in playoff points per game. That's pretty damn good, especially in an era where scoring is harder than prior eras.

I guess no one watched this game last night, but the Penguins scored in OT on a Crosby goal.

Geez. Someone is taking this matchup too seriously.

Now he'll be living in one of those tall apartment buildings in Russia.

The Sharks had 9 more shots and controlled the play. They held the Blues to 23 SOG. If not for Elliott, the Sharks win the game. They were all over the Blues in the 3rd. Did some Sharks players snub you of an autograph back home or something?

Blues were lucky to win game 1. San Jose was the better team but that soft goal killed them.

I'd say playing a team two years in a row in the playoffs is a budding rivalry. Toronto stinks, but they're a good candidate for a budding rivalry also.

I still can't believe this is the WCF. The resistible force versus the movable object. One of these teams is actually finally going to the SCF. Something has to give here. Yes, I know the Blues made it there in their inaugural three seasons, but that was because of the stupid divisional structure of the league back then.

The Sharks are not the Wings' biggest rival out West since the Avalanche. That honor would belong to the Anaheim Ducks.

LOL. So a Wings fan should like the Blues more than the Sharks? Give me a break. How long have you been a Wings fan? Since 2009? And forget the Preds. They're done.

Hopefully, the Sharks will win the Cup. I don't like the other three teams.

If they play San Jose in the WCF, I won't know what to think. This may have been the year of the choker. Washington clearly missed the party.

Those people aren't very familiar with the Capitals' history. A team's rotten history is hard to change.

Would the Stars give us anything for Howard?

Don't you want to see Yzerman skate the Cup at the Blues stadium?

I hate it when we collapse on the PK. Especially when we refuse to block shots. We give up too many clean point shots. I'd like to see a more aggressive style of penalty killing. If you're playing the 1984 Oilers, maybe that's not a good idea, but for most opponents, I'd be more aggressive.

I suppose Ron Francis is one of the 5 greatest players ever? Points per game is also overrated due to the era. Ovechkin's points per game are more impressive for this era than Dionne's were back then. Ovechkin has won more individual awards and had more nominations. Their careers are only similar in that they're great players who never made the Conference Finals. I don't believe Dionne is regarded as a top 3 or top 4 player for his era. Ovechkin only has Crosby to compete with for best player in his era.

He scored 7 points in this series. More than Crosby. His teammates just don't get it done in the playoffs. Not having their goalie give up a soft goal at the beginning of the game would help. Remember Varlamov falling apart in game 7 in 2009? Holtby had a great year, but an untimely goal can kill a team's momentum. However, I think the Pens are a great team and will likely win the Cup. That should also be noted as a reason for the Capitals' failure this year. But if we're looking over a period of years, the Capitals don't get enough production from offensive players and they likely need more veterans with Cup experience. Would also help to have a coach who's actually been to the Conference Finals. BTW, I have Ovechkin ranked ahead of Dionne. Dionne scored a ton of points, but Ovechkin dominated his era more.

Pittsburgh tried building around a winger in Jagr and they never could push through in the late 90's. Lafleur was Montreal's best player in the late 70's, but I wouldn't say they built the team around him as they were very well rounded with stars. So maybe the theory is correct. I'll have to think some more. I guess it depends on the definition of building around a player. Are we talking about a star player surrounded my mediocre players? If so, that team would never win no matter what position the star plays. If we're talking about the best player being a winger, then I already brought up Montreal with Lafleur. You could say the same about Richard or Howe as well.

You're forgetting Keith, Seabrook, Hossa, Sharp. There's more to Chicago's success than just Kane and Tayes.

I feel bad for him.

Did Washington even touch the puck in overtime?

Is Nashville better than everyone thought, or were the Kings just overrated? Feels to me like San Hosay is playing down to the competition here. Nashville vs. Dallas would be a killer for ratings. Then again, other than Chicago, pretty much any Western Conference team kills NHL ratings.