T-Ruff

Yeah get rid of division winners 1-2-3. This year it's going to be really bad. Pittsburgh and Philly will have the #2 and #3 records in the East but play each other 4 vs 5. It's also possible that New Jersey finishes higher than Boston landing in #6 despite having the 4th best record in the conference. Madness!

Uhh Minnesota would be an unreal team to play for... One of the best crowds/fans/arenas in the league.

Conklin starting as per Ansar Khan

Was watching this live but wasn't paying attention to the players reactions, glad I wasn't the only one who thought something was off though

You may already be aware of this and still don't like it, but the coach interviews are taped during commercial breaks and then replayed on that short delay when the game comes back on, so even though they are talking while the game is on they're actually only doing it during TV time-outs. I think it's a great extension of the viewing experience for fans at home and causes minimal interference.

The difference between Crosby and Datsyuk's offensive game is greater than the difference in their defensive game. Crosby is easily the best player in the league, and Datsyuk is a perhaps close but definitive 2nd. NHL players agree in a recent poll they did and of course they're a better sample than a bunch of us Red Wings fans.

Going to be real hard to stop Pittsburgh.. I hope someone can do it though. They have great Depth IMO. They've slotted Crosby into the 3rd line with Cooke and Kennedy so as not to disrupt the chemistry the had going already. Cooke has 4 goals and Kennedy has 4 assists in those 2 games. Neal-Malkin-Kunitz and Sullivan-Staal-Dupuis gives them 3 lines that match up against any other teams 3 lines quite well. A d-corps of Letang, Michalek, Martin, Niskanen, Orpik is very solid as well, and of course Fluery is hot. If they stay 4th/5th I hope Philadelphia can stop them in round 1 if Bryz stays hot and they get production from all their lines, they're quite talented as well. But it seems they will catch the Rangers for first and take home ice throughout the East playoffs, and then watch out.

Holmstrom you idiot wtf, don't give them such easy calls like that when you're already down 1-0

Oilers to beat the Canes back when they played for the Cup. Canes got pretty lucky throughout that Cup run, the Sabres who played them in the ECF or the Oilers would have been a better winner in my book. Senators to beat the Ducks in 07. Back when I really hated the Ducks and the Sens were becoming my 2nd favourite team. Besides the fact they got pretty fortunate to beat the Wings in the ECF, would have much preferred to see Alfy raise the cup than that Niedermayer punk. Leafs to beat the Canes in 2002 ECF. I don't have anything against the Canes (with their 2nd appearance on this list), but a Leafs/Wings Final would have been great. And we all know the Cup was won in the WCF that year anyway so it wouldn't have changed the outcome Flyers to beat the Hawks in the SCF as OP said. Flyers are one of my favourite teams and of course the Hawks suck. Bruins to beat the Canes in the 2009 ECSF (lol Canes again). Carolina squeeked by Boston in 7 but by then Carolina was completely depleted and worn out, making for an easy sweep by the Penguins. Boston would have given the Penguins a much better run, which would have resulted in a more worn out team facing the Wings in the SCF, or perhaps an original 6 SCF (though I still would have preferred a rematch) Babcock and the Ducks to beat the Devils in 03, was cheering for Kariya and company hard, would have been nice to see the team that beat the Wings go all the way.

Would love it but I don't see it happening this year

Bad puns are pretty much the bread and butter of sports headlines, won't change anytime soon and I don't mind it, TSN does it too but NHL.com is probably the worst offender, check this out rofl It's probably just confirmation bias, you only remember the times that it happens. There's no Crosby or even Penguins headlines on the homepage right now

Nothing got me more excited than Robert Lang, and he was a legend for the duration of his stint with the Wings. Grabbing the NHL leading point getter at the time, then he gets 4 points in his first game?! Bob rules them all.

lol I saw the thread and instantly thought I was wrong and the game actually was today In any event, Vancouver is literally the last team in the league I want the streak to end to, get it done Wings.

Great trade for the Preds, Gill has come a long way since his Bruins and then Leafs days... I hope he helps them find some success this year, I'll be cheering for them as long as it's not against the Wings

You can put an asterisk on the Wings record for the few SO wins but then you can also put one on the 1929 Bruins for not having to travel west of Chicago in an entire season that was only 44 games. Greg Wyshnyski puts it best:

I figured why not send an email EDIT: The out-of-office auto-reply

If Selanne decides to come to Detroit it shouldn't cost much at all, at least not compared to other teams' star players. The Ducks will only trade him if he wants to and if/when he decides that team will be the only one in the running, and also under the impression that he won't be coming back. His recent comments where he jokingly said that he and Flip have good chemistry makes me somewhat optimistic about it.

I know, I was saying Cleary getting that goal on them in 2009 to end the 7 game series was satisfactory revenge as far as the Ducks are concerned

I want Pittsburgh. Fully healthy, no excuses. That loss still stings, being up 2-0 and 3-2 and all the rest. And beat the Sharks in the WCF! I used to think the Ducks but that series with a late go ahead goal in game 7 on a so-called controversial play with Cleary pushing it in through Hiller's pad (or was it Hiller then, whatever) was satisfactory. And winning the Cup the next year kind of made that BS series less of an issue.

I'd definitely love to acquire him. It is a long contract but in a few years it will be great value and it already is if he even just stays a 30 goal scorer (and he could easily surpass that). The new CBA also has the potential to roll back salaries and cut long contracts down which minimizes the risk in that way as well. I see him as a prime target for the Leafs, haven't thought about him coming here but I like the idea.

I don't think CBC explicitly mentioned Crosby or Ovechkin once (Maybe Ovechkin once in passing reference to the fancy breakaway event). Props to them. They had Price miked up and I gained a lot of admiration for him, and the way he handled his role in that contest. Jim Hughson and Craig Simpson also commented that Datsyuk was probably the best overall player in the league. Crowd going nuts on Chara's 108.8mph shot was cool (since we heard their reaction before seeing the time) Overall very solid event IMO.

Yeah, the All-Star game has always been for kids and sponsors.. I care about it less now and I believe it's simply because I'm not a kid anymore. I think they need to loosen up a bit to make it more exciting... I hate when the linesman calls a close offside in an All-Star game. What's the point? Just let them play pond hockey. I read an idea on another forum that they could breathe life into the All Star fantasy draft by running a sweepstakes for two lucky fans to be the ones who make the draft selections, it would get rid of the staleness of Alfredsson taking all his teammates and Swedes etc. The two winners also get to set the lines that the coach works with, and perhaps stand behind the bench for the game because why not.

Yeah, if that's what he said (thought I heard it too), it's a rare mistake from the master of hockey trivia Don't worry itsa comin Bert!

From what I've seen and read they are only getting better and gaining confidence. This is evident with their shutout of the #1 Rangers last night, I don't think they'll slip out too easily.