awingsincebirth

The problem is that there are just so many variables that can influence different goal scorers from different eras, as the game has changed so much. I'd say that Bure was brilliant, Bossy was brilliant, Gretzky was brilliant, Richard was brilliant, the Hulls were brilliant, Ovechkin is brilliant. I find that to be sufficient enough.

Agreed. On one hand I really love this stat, but on the other hand, it scares the s*** out of me. This team - better than any other in the league - knows that come playoff time, the regular season gets thrown out the window. The last thing I want is this team to get comfortable and start resting on their laurels. Thankfully, I know we have enough character in our locker room, both players and coaches, that this isn't going to happen. Add to that the fact that we have management that will do anything it takes to win, and ya, im pretty excited for playoff time!

I don't want to jinx it so I'm going to say the exact opposite of why I believe to be true. There is no way that we can pull it off! I am very excited for the Leafs game, that team is a joke!

Good read! If he can keep up this conditioning and strength training, I can really see Dats becoming consistent 100 point scorer for the next few years. Pair that with the defensive ability that we know he has, and this guy could potentially be one of if not the best overall players in the game. Of course, Z is always gonna have something to say about that... Damnit, I love that we have both of those guys!

Paddock?!?! Really?!? I've kind of come to hate that guy given that he has about as much personality as my left nut. I can't stand having to listen to his unbearably monotone press conferences, breathing into the mike heavier than a 400 pound fat guy running to catch an ice cream truck. That's just me tho I guess.

I agree completely. Anyone with a deep appreciation for the game knows that Lids drives the bus around here.

I started a thread about this very issue on Sunday, and pretty much all the posters agreed that he probably wouldn't win it just because of the way the award is set up to favour superstars on poorer teams. One new thing that I am wondering is that if Detroit can keep up the absolute domination that they have been, you might wonder if the voters mite make it a special circumstance. If Detroit could end up with a 25-30 point lead over the next best team, do you think that the voters might say, "There hasn't been a team this good for a long time, maybe we should take a look at the ONE key player who made it that way"?? That player is Lidstrom, no ifs ands or buts.

Hello everyone, Im a brand new member to LGW, although I've been trolling around as a guest all season and I decided to take the plunge. I'm lovin the way we've been playing this year and I hope we can keep it up. So here's what I have to say. Nick Lidstrom is undisputably the greatest defenseman of his generation, arguably 2nd or 3rd on the all-time list. 4 or 5 Norrises (I can't remember the exact number at the moment), a Conn Smythe and 3 Cups. Realistically, there is only one trophy missing from his collection. Pros: -With the numbers he's been putting up this year - leading the league in +/-, top five in the league in assists, and leading all defensement in scoring as the quarterback of a team excercising more dominance than any other team in recent history - you have to think he's in the running. -Add to that the fact that Sid has all but been taken out of the running with his injury and Vinny's team sucks a lot of ass, that takes away a couple of the big names and gives Lids even better odds. -I've got to wonder if the fact that (especially if Chris "Closeted Homosexual" Pronger was able to win one) he's getting near the end of his "Hart Worthy" career and he has yet to win one might influence some of the voters. Cons: -The fact that he plays on a team with two of the league's top 6 scorers, the goalies with the two best goals against averages in the league, 6 of the top 10 +/- players in the league, and has the 2nd leading defenseman scorer as his partner takes away some of the credit from him. (Even though it shouldn't) -I tend to think that its a lot more difficult for a defenseman to win the award in general as it seems to be more forward biased. -Ovechkin has been lights out this year, and if he can get his team into the playoffs, he'll be very tough to beat in the race for the Hart. Plus, I think the league would absolutely love to give it to AO. (For the record, I'm a huge Ovie Fan) So there it is. As far as current candidates I think you have Lids, Ovechkin, Kovalchuk, Iggy, maybe Alfredson (did I miss any?), you may even be able to put a Z or Dats as long shots. In my mind there is know question who the best, most valuable player in the league is, and thats Lidstrom. Even for all the awards and accolades he's won I think he is still underappreciated throughout the league. I think that, based on what we've seen so far this season, he should be the Hart winner, but I just don't think its very likely. What are your guys' thoughts?? Do you think he deserves it? Do you think he has a real shot? (I know individual awards aren't that important, but its still cool to wonder. Sorry about how long it is.)

I know from reading a lot of pre-game quotes from coaches and players from other teams that they tend to dwell on the fact that we are such a great puck possession team. They come into the game knowing that we are going to have the puck for most of it, and I think that tends to put more pressure on them to try and force stuff to happen when they do have the puck. And to answer the question about Lids...I've played hockey pretty much my entire life, and I have always hated going into games when you know that the other team has a real solid defensemen who is going to shut you down almost every time, and I think that has a genuine effect on the way that you play. So just imagine this on a much grander scale in the case of Norris Nick, and I'm sure that a fair share of superstars have elected to strap on a pair of Depends come game day.

I see exactly what your saying and I realize that this is the reason why (in all likelihood) Nick won't win the award. I guess what I'm questioning is the level with which success is being judged. Yes, without AO and Luongo respectively, the Caps and Nucks would both be right in the basement. But because of those two players, the two teams will probably both finish with records that place them as bottom seeds in the playoffs. Detroit, on the other hand, may finish with one of the alltime great regular season records, but without Nick, this team would still probably finish near or at the top of the conference, but not nearly as dominantly. My problem is that the MVP tends to be judged as that player that makes his weak- mediocre team into a mediocre-somewhat dangerous team. This is opposed to a player that makes his dangerous team into a very dangerous team. Am I making any sense here?? Ideally, you should simply look at the points a team finishes with and somehow compare that to the amount of points that a team would have had without that certain player (Obviously this is in no way possible). I honestly think that if you did that there would not be much of a difference between Lids-Detroit and Washington-AO. The only difference is that this same amount transforms Washington into a playoff team, whereas it only makes Detroit an even more dominant team than they already are. You see what I'm saying?

I agree entirely. This is Lid's team, and he is the engine that drives us. Also, I knew I was forgetting someone, Bobby Lou is a monster and he has a real good shot at it. He was my preseason pick for the Hart.