shadow47

Let's see, Pavel playing the best hockey of his career just before the playoffs, it's probably time to do something to drastically change things, right? Ladies and gentleman, Pavlexei Yashyuk!

When Helene says, "the fact they are all skating is good" makes me think about Dom almost full out practicing for two rounds of the playoffs and still never playing last year. *sigh* HSJ...

To respond to the OT comment, Detroit has been lousy in playoff overtime for years, much worse than regular season.

Note that Edmonton's only win in the 18 games was against Colorado, who are on a 13-0-2 run. Also ponder if you'd want the Wings facing a team that would need to enter the playoffs on a 15-0-2 run (think about early round 2002 without Yzerman et. al).

Helene St. James Blog Helene St. James' blog Red Wings nursing numerous key injuries April 6, 2007 For those attempting to keep tally at home, here is an update on every known recent Red Wings injury. Forward Todd Bertuzzi strained his neck during a collision with Chris Osgood in the first period of Thursday’s 3-2 s...blah blah blah... here: Goaltender Dominik Hasek is bothered by the same right thigh soreness that sidelined him three games last month. Babcock said Hasek would practice today, but he won’t play Saturday. ????????????????????? Other sources: http://www.mlive.com/redwings/stories/inde....xml&coll=1 They were missing three top players with injuries -- goaltender Dominik Hasek (thigh), defenseman Nicklas Lidstrom (back) and center Henrik Zetterberg (back)-- and lost forward Todd Bertuzzi afte... http://www.detnews.com/apps/pbcs.dll/artic...395/1004/SPORTS Already without Nicklas Lidstrom (lower back), Henrik Zetterberg (inflamed disc) and Niklas Kronwall (sacrum), and with Dominik Hasek (thigh) resting a mild injury, the Wings lost one more key player. BTW how can the injury be mild if it's become chronic?

Strange that a movie called "In the Crease" does not have any goalie cameos (at least in the names mentioned).

Dumbest thread of the season.

Hmmmmmm, I have that game on tape...this reminds me a little of a dream I had last night. The Wings played Dallas in Round 1 of the playoffs, and all the goals Dallas scored were pretty similar, from outside the zone. Although things weren't exactly normal in other areas either...

This thread has started off rather dumbly...we've got one guy that says Hasek's rushes to the blue line only works 15% of the time, less than 2 times out of 10 (which is more like the times it DOESN'T), while ignoring the fact that he saved 4 of 5 clean breakaways last night, the one goal against being Zubov's. Then the next guy claims Hasek "flips" all over in shootouts, while I can attest to the fact that if anything he is too controlled in them, more often than not being beat under the blocker or through the legs. He'd save more if he padstacked once in awhile... Incidentally people can call this what you want, Hasek defending, etc., but all it is is the facts.

"Seriously", you need to think about things before saying them. What you claim about the road and back to back is crap, he plays on the road plenty and back to backs are about all he doesn't play. Do you consider these goalies "true nuber ones?" Ryan Miller-58 games Hasek-53 games J.S. Giguere-54 games Cam Ward-56 games Nikolai Khabibulin-55 games Olaf Kolzig-51 games So... ...what are you trying to prove with this? You don't have to be playing 75 games a season to be a number one goalie. Also have to disagree with you on save percentage as an individual stat--it is especially difficult to have an inflated SP when your team doesn't let any shots through; a perfect example is this year with Dom. Do you really believe if Detroit gave up 30+ shots a night that any more goals would go in? But just 5 outside chances per night would raise the Dom's sp from an apparently average .910 to a near league-leading .925. 5 extra easy saves per game. Does this really help measure a goalie? Take it from me, it doesn't.

So, obviously on the second CGY goal, it was a dive in an attempt to draw a penalty. Dom's explanation so as not to publicly admit taking a dive: "Somebody bumped me in the head, I don't know it if was my teammate or their player, and I fell down on my back," he said. "I was a little bit confused, I didn't know what was going on. Before I got up, they scored that goal." Judging by the way the game came out as a whole, it was a fine game by most players playing, but here's what our hero Babcock thinks about the whole thing: Red Wings coach Mike Babcock offered a different version, and said he talked to Hasek during the second intermission. "It wasn't interference at all. Our goalie tried to draw the penalty and he dove and they shot it in the net," Babcock said. "The bottom line is embellishment is something that happens in our games, probably too much, and when you try and draw a penalty and they shoot it in our net, it's a tough one." "In the past AND I just mentioned it tonight. The bottom line is embellishment is something that happens in our game probably too much and when you try to draw a penalty and it doesn't go your way, it's a tough one." While his teammates were too classy to call him out on it, you can bet there was a measure of frustration on their bench that matched Babcock's. After all, it kept the Wings one point away from catching Nashville. Babcock reviewed the play and informed a passing scribe there was contact from Iginla's elbow but nothing that warranted the violent reaction every ref from here to Minsk has seen before. "I told him, 'That's why nobody calls it,' " said Babcock. The Flames' reaction: No one in the Flames dressing room was either surprised or upset by Hasek's shenanigans but some had to fight off a grin at how foolish the six-time Vezina and two-time Hart winner looked. "It was a good call by the referee to ignore the dive," said Huselius. "It wasn't the best shot but it went in. Obviously, if the referee would have blown the whistle it's a good play but it worked out for us." I understand the coach is upset about losing the game, but how do you blame the goalie in this one? I think it's pretty difficult when your team scores 1 and it's Hasek's fault just because the guy is trying to get his team a powerplay. It's always easy to say afterwards that he shouldn't have tried when a goal goes in, but you can say that about any play in hockey. And to publicly comment on it is pointless--should Hasek never try to draw a penalty again? Should Hasek never leave the crease again? Never flop again?...most players in this league embellish or dive at some point, several of the Wings' penalties that night were clear dives. Personally, whether Babs wants to accept it or not, diving is a part of sports and will be there whether he likes it or not. Maybe if the Wings embellished more they would not be in such a powerplay deficit...he lost points with me on this one. Maybe he could have Osgood start in the playoffs.

I agree, it was a dive and a bad idea at the time, just trying to do too much. Really no reason to bring it up in the press still, MB knows they have a field day with quotes like this.

Only once have his dives resulted directly in a goal being scored...that's why I'm saying he's overreacting. Hasek has dove plenty this year but many of those have resulted in Wings PPs and others have just been no-calls, with Dom getting one or two diving penalties. I've watched every game and I have a good memory. Had it not been a game-winning goal, I suspect he wouldn't have said anything. But he might've kept his trap shut nonetheless when the Wings are better off for the dives than without.

"Goals"? Pretty sure this is the one time this year that his dives have resulted in a goal against. Usually there's an opposing player headed to the box. For that reason alone he shouldn't stop diving, since no other player in the league will.

Times Hasek's flops have resulted in a powerplay for the Wings this season: numerous Times Hasek's flops have resulted directly in a goal for the opposition: 1 So I'm not sure why Babcock feels the need to make a big deal out of this since it's helping the team. And it's pretty ridiculous that fans think you can just weed out a mistake here and there and get a perfect player...the whole game is a neverending series of decisions, all with the potential to result in "mistakes". The fact that DH plays with so few is a tribute to his skill in the crease...in short it's easy to highlight the mistakes and ignore the plays he makes look like nothing. I'm just saying there was no reason to say anything in the papers...Babc should just keep quiet and work on the part of his team that actually NEEDS his "coaching". Edited: to include quotations marks where appropriate

Hasek didn't dive in the Van game to get a penalty...he was diving to make a save after he tried to stop the cycling by the Canucks after Detroit's defense proved ineffective at stopping it themselves. Here's an interesting tidbit from TSN...again fueling the "What is MB thinking?" philosophy. per TSN.ca There was a brief exchange between the coach and veteran goaltender during the second intermission when Babcock refused to let Hasek see the video replay afterwards, but apparently there were no harsh words exchanged. I don't know who Babcock thinks he is, but when you've got Dom Hasek wanting to look at a replay, why not let him? Someone has a slight power trip going on.

Just to give people a perspective on the padding thing, fitting the padding is THE hardest part of replacing the old plastic helmets with carbon fibre/kevlar ones. The problem is that the Cooper helmets had a mold for the helmet and a machine cut for the foam, that made sure the sizes were standardized. The Warwick and other versions, the padding is handcut so it won't feel the same. Also, the Rubatex padding in the SK2000 hardens over time, so new padding feels different. The Warwick helmet is also noticeably heavier, and since it is molded off of Hasek's helmet, might be slightly different in length than Ozzies current bucket (the SK's adjust in length). Also, since the Warwick helmets are completely stiff, they do not comform to your head the way the thin plastic SK2000 does (think leather football helmets compared to now). This makes padding the mask differently necessary b/c it will not HUG YOUR HEAD the way a Cooper helmet did to stay tight, you've got to put a touch more foam in. This will always make the helmet feel different in addition to the weight and the contact points (which if you can believe, DO matter and affect overall feel, contact points are where the helmet fits the tightest and are the main stabilizing areas in the padding). I can attest as someone who is used to a Cooper SK moving to a CustomMadeMasks ghosted SK2000, it is a difficult transition.

Just as the title would suggest...what will the final four teams left standing be and who will take the ultimate prize? After mulling it over a bit here is my prediction: Eastern: Pittsburgh over Atlanta Western: San Jose over Anaheim Cup: Pittsburgh over San Jose It just seems like no one can touch San and An in pure skill and overall depth...all these teams have ? goaltending but I don't think it's going to matter. I'd like to think Detroit can win it, but realistically at this point this is what I see happening. No one can match the Sharks scoring, and their goaltenders/defense have put up 5 shutouts in 7 games or something ridiculous. The Ducks are the best team in the conference overall IMO. Nashville doesn't have the CLUTCH goaltending and Vancouver doesn't have anything else. In the East, you have to think that a SouthEast team three years running would make sense, right? The Thrashers are a mercurial bunch but I believe they will elevate their games enough to come out of the scrum to the final 4. The Penguins maybe haven't deserved to win lately but they have been. This is a team that has been finding ways and that is the kind of team that excels in the playoffs. If Thibault starts this team will go the distance.

Wrong...he was trying to do too much and draw a penalty so DET could actually mount an attack, but only because the refs were handing the Flames the game with PP's. You can't blame the guy for trying. It's just like Holmstrom, the refs will always give the benefit of the doubt to the opposing player in a penalty situation. It was a dive, but so was Friesen's crap earlier that was a penalty. In the end it was the winner, but look at how the 3rd turned out...barely any chances at all. You aren't going to do too much scoring 1 goal per game. BTW anyone else notice how much Calder dives at pucks? It's like one time per game or so--I've always imagined players doing that so regularly but hadn't seen it til now.

That is, if Vancouver can hold onto the division lead and don't play Detroit in Round 1 in the 4/5 draw. If they win the division and Detroit doesn't (a definite possibility), it's feasible that they'd meet in Round 2 if either Anaheim or Nashville advanced. Either way, I'm guessing most people would prefer to avoid the Canucks at any point in the playoffs. That said, I meant to post this in my earlier post (edited), but New Jersey won't get out of the first round. Brodeur has cracked in recent years when playoff time comes around, and NJ is not icing a powerhouse team this year to help him out. If they face off against Pittsburgh or Carolina, they will be far worse off than if they play the Rangers. I will be terribly surprised if they make it past the opening round.

In my ideal, dream world, Detroit beats NJ in the finals in overtime of Game 7, Todd Bertuzzi knocking in a loose puck for the win after NJ misses an empty net at the other end (just to hear Mike Emrick's stupid reaction...oooohh! Squibbed one, oh no my beloved Devils). I had to go with my gut feeling on this...no one thought Edmonton, Carolina, or Calgary would make it either. Pittsburgh...it's happening

Well, you've successfully copied and pasted your first post into a new reply. Thank you for restating the same point as before, the fact is, anyone who actually watched the Sabres of that era (rather than just reading about them or catching the odd game) knows that while Buffalo might've attempted this strategy (out of necessity being an unskilled and young team), the end result was not as watertight as the idea, and was, essentially, what every team in the league tries to do: defend. In fact, Buffalo's young players would take more chances due to their confidence in the goaltending, which, in turn, would lead to the odd-man rushes the other way. Claiming NJ gave up better quality scoring chances than Buffalo in those years is just plain inaccurate.

Agreed, the poster who said the Sabres limited the opposition to outside shots predominantly doesn't know what he's talking about--that guy was the best player in the league for three years 97-99, the Hockey News called him the #1 player in the league in '95 as well. People who proclaim this stuff WATCH games...all teams' games. Brodeur has one season where he's facing a few more shots and suddenly all his under-20 a night 1st Round loss seasons are 45 save shutouts. I have infinite game tapes that I could peruse to prove this on both goalies' behalfs, but there really is no point, since "Brodeur is so SICK!" and "Hasek is OLD!".

Just in case the NHL noobs think that "Marty" wins the Cup every season, here's proof that Brodeur's put up some so-so/lousy playoff runs to go along with some winning teams: 94...Matteau, Matteau! This was Brodeur's best playoff season IMO 95...They were good enough in '94, the Devils give up 17,18,16,17,23,24,16 shots against in their last 7 games of the playoffs. 96...took the Devils to... ...no playoffs. Beaten 5-2 by lowly Ottawa in a do or die game to miss. 97...lost in the second round to the Rangers on a Graves' wraparound Matteau Part Deux. Gave up 8 goals in the 5 games and lost 4. He was good but not good enough, apparently...reminds me of Dom in '94. 98...Devils lose in 6 to the Senators in Round 1. 99...Devils lose in Game 7 of Round 1 to Pittsburgh. Brodeur gives up 4 goals on 13 shots in Game 7. In Jersey's 4 losses, Brodeur's save percentage total is a horrible .783. Oops. 00...Jersey wins the Cup over Dallas. In the three regulation games of the Finals, Dallas manages 17, 23, and 17 shots on Brodeur. Dallas records a mere 31 in a double overtime game. 01...Jersey loses to Colorado in the Finals, as Colorado nets a 5-0 win in Game 1. In Game 6 and 7 as NJ blows the 3-2 series edge, Brodeur's save percentage is .825. NJ allows 30, 20, 21, 12, 23, 18, and 22 shots against in the Finals, the only time in the playoffs they allowed over twenty shots four times in a series in which all the games were decided in regulation. 02...Brodeur gives up 9 goals in 6 games to Carolina, NJ loses 4-2 in Round 1 to Carolina. 03...Brodeur smashes Hasek's playoff shutout record, blanking the Ducks 3-0 for his seventh of the season and the Cup. Three of the seven shutouts featured shots totals of 16, 16, and 15. This is arguably Brodeur's best campaign. 04...The Devils lose in 5 games in Round 1 to Philadelphia. Robert Esche outduels Brodeur, winning 4 of 5 from him. In one of the five games did Philadelphia record more than 26 shots. 05...Eh........... 06...Lose in five in Round 2 to Carolina, including a 6-0 massacre in Game 1. Pretty average when he doesn't have a championship team in the stable...Devs better hope they don't have to play the Canes this year, even though they've beaten them three times already.

These are two false statements disguised as fact.