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theman19

Best Cup Teams of the Decade

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http://sports.yahoo.com/nhl/blog/puck_dadd...1&success=1

anyone who follows puckdaddy knows he's a bit of a homer and that's okay. But i found his logic in this post flawed.

His first two teams on the list are the canes and lightning champ teams, which he comments that for this or that reason shouldn't have won the cup. Then goes on a few teams down to say the pens of last season were a "monster"

Now as someone who's always had a shine for the canes (i am afterall born and raised North Carolinian) It's always irked me for people to say the 06 canes shouldn't have won the cup. My point is, people could and probably should say that about the pens, but arn't. If people are still talking about the flames got jobbed out of the cup, how come only a few bitter wings fans are talking about the pens?

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Any team that wins the Cup in 7 games doesn't deserve to be called one of the "greatest" teams. 4 or 5 games to win the Cup means "dominance" of the other team.

Yeah, there were too many "ifs" in last years finals to say that Pittsburgh dominated.

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Guest CaliWingsNut

My opinion is that Detroit was (and still is) too injured to succeed.

That has nothing to do with the Penguins, and so rather than bash them for beating a broken team I stay relatively quiet.

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rather good list. Although I would rank that Anaheim team a little bit higher. That WCF was one of the best battles my team was involved in. Certainly much better than last year's final. At least, I understood then and understand now that we were beaten by a little bit better team.

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It's like it is taboo to mention how decimated Detroit was by injuries when talking about the Pens '09 Cup Run.

A Cup is a Cup, but the fact it took a very close 7 games for Pittsburgh to beat an entirely run-down Red Wings team pretty much takes them down a few notches in the context of how strong their Cup team was.

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Reading this thread, I was expecting to see the Pens in #1 the way you guys were going on....can't argue with what his list much tbh.

I just hope history doesn't short-change the 08 team. 1st in points, 2nd in goals for, 1st in shots, 1st in goals allowed, 1st in shots allowed. They were an absolute machine that year, the perfect confluence of talent, desire and coaching, utterly dominant in all phases of the game.

But I always leave the last word to Bowman in these kinds of threads. He called the 02 Wings his best ever team, and considering he coached the 70s Canadiens, the Lemiuex-Francis-Jagr & co Penguins as well, that counts for a hell of a lot. Aside from star power, the other big thing for that 02 team is who they beat. Lets be honest, the Avs had a great team, and the 2002 WCF will go down in history as an all-time classic. Detroits 2-0 win in game 6 is perhaps the finest performance I have ever seen from a Wings team.

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Reading this thread, I was expecting to see the Pens in #1 the way you guys were going on....can't argue with what his list much tbh.

I just hope history doesn't short-change the 08 team. 1st in points, 2nd in goals for, 1st in shots, 1st in goals allowed, 1st in shots allowed. They were an absolute machine that year, the perfect confluence of talent, desire and coaching, utterly dominant in all phases of the game.

But I always leave the last word to Bowman in these kinds of threads. He called the 02 Wings his best ever team, and considering he coached the 70s Canadiens, the Lemiuex-Francis-Jagr & co Penguins as well, that counts for a hell of a lot. Aside from star power, the other big thing for that 02 team is who they beat. Lets be honest, the Avs had a great team, and the 2002 WCF will go down in history as an all-time classic. Detroits 2-0 win in game 6 is perhaps the finest performance I have ever seen from a Wings team.

And Patrick Roy's performance in game 7 is one of the biggest chokes under pressure that I have seen in a conference championship deciding game.

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It's like it is taboo to mention how decimated Detroit was by injuries when talking about the Pens '09 Cup Run.

A Cup is a Cup, but the fact it took a very close 7 games for Pittsburgh to beat an entirely run-down Red Wings team pretty much takes them down a few notches in the context of how strong their Cup team was.

I agree. Most of the Wings top players were playing somewhere around 65%-75% and along with several fishy incidents still were a goalpost away from a tie in Game 7. I understand no one wants to take anything away from the Penguins cup run, especially not with Sid on the team, but come on <_<.

But I think Puck Daddy's list is meant to compare team vs. team based on their skill compared to one another, not most dominant win or how much they deserved to win the year they won it. It which case I have no complaints with the list other than to argue that our cup winning team was a good deal better and healthier than the team that almost ousted the Ducks cup team and should be a bit ahead of them at number 4.

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I was happy to see the 09 Pens below the 08 Wings. Finally someone in the media that has some common sense and can see past all the hype around them. They won the Cup and I'll give them their due, but they were in 10th place in February, they were lucky to not have to face the Bruins or Devils in the playoffs and Justin freaking Abdelkader had more goals than Crosby and as many as Malkin. Not exactly the road most champions take. I would've probably ranked them even lower than 6th.

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Guest Lidstromboli

abdelkader definitely dominated the opposition for at least 3 rounds, racking up over 30 points

oh wait

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abdelkader definitely dominated the opposition for at least 3 rounds, racking up over 30 points

oh wait

Don't you know? Crosby and Malkin are bordline AHL pests that can't even tie their skates without help from Crosby's mom. :rolleyes:

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It's like it is taboo to mention how decimated Detroit was by injuries when talking about the Pens '09 Cup Run.

A Cup is a Cup, but the fact it took a very close 7 games for Pittsburgh to beat an entirely run-down Red Wings team pretty much takes them down a few notches in the context of how strong their Cup team was.

Yup. They beat a Wings team decimated by injuries to their best players by a single goal.

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Your sarcasm is pointless here given that both teams last year made it to back to back finals.

I thought I read somewhere in the thread that the Penguin's should be lower. I was just using that comment to express that they weren't a bad team at all, and they are right where they should be.

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Now as someone who's always had a shine for the canes (i am afterall born and raised North Carolinian) It's always irked me for people to say the 06 canes shouldn't have won the cup. My point is, people could and probably should say that about the pens, but arn't. If people are still talking about the flames got jobbed out of the cup, how come only a few bitter wings fans are talking about the pens?

I have to address this, I've always been one of those people who say the Canes were lucky to win the Cup in '06. I truly believe they were for the following reasons:

Round 1. Canadiens win both games on the road to go up 2-0, Jason Williams (accidentally) takes the captain Koivu out of the series with a serious eye injury demoralizing the Canadiens and the Canes win 4 straight to close out the series all in one goal games (2-1 OT, 3-2, 2-1, 2-1)... Cam Ward also had an effect in turning the tide, but the loss of Koivu isn't insignificant.

Round 2. Nothing wrong with this, they beat the Devils handily 4-1

While the first 2 rounds aren't a big factor in my opinion, the real issue of luck comes in the final 2 rounds:

ECF: Buffalo was missing 4 out of their top 6 defenseman, and the series still went to 7 games.

SCF: Edmonton lost Roloson in game 1, he was their MVP up to that point and virtually the only reason the Oilers were in the final. Not to mention Ty Conklin's gaff with 30 seconds to go gave the Canes a "free" 1-0 lead in the series... After this the Oilers still took it to 7 games.

Of course it's all hypothetical to say that things would've gone differently in the last 2 series (or round 1 for that matter) if injuries had gone differently, but it still resulted in rather fortuitous situations for the Hurricanes. (I'll agree that the Pens had things go their way in the run last year, but I don't think it can be considered to the same degree as the Hurricanes in '06)

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My opinion is that Detroit was (and still is) too injured to succeed.

That has nothing to do with the Penguins, and so rather than bash them for beating a broken team I stay relatively quiet.

Ditto.

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this list is in order of what I would probably do, too. the only thing is though, the '02 Wings were basically in jeopardy of getting upset in the 1st round to the 'Nucks, just like the previous year in the 1st round against the Kings (though obviously the 01 & 02 Wings were clearly different teams)....

anyway, that Avalanche team should *probably* be #1... they were a very scary team, 2002 Wings should be #2, Devs after that.... etc

woo!

Go Wings :)

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I didn't read the article but I think it's insane for anyone to suggest Penguins were the dominant team last year in the SCF. Anybody with a half of brain cell knows that it took a full 7 games, a questionable goal, too many men and a non-suspension on Malkin for the Penguins barley beat a depleted, injured and exhausted Red Wings team.

I hate the *what ifs* as anybody else, but for the sake of Puck Daddies claim, had the Wings been healthy, Penguins wouldn't made it past 5 or 6 games; Wings would have DOMINATED them.

That said, injuries are part of the game and Penguins took full advantage to become the "champions". In my mind, they're not really a championship team, they're just lucky the Red Wings weren't healthy.

I'm proud of my Red Wings, they battled HARD. Had the injuries been on the other team, Wings would have swept. Penguins struggled to beat the Wings with all its injuries.

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Guest Lidstromboli
In my mind, they're not really a championship team, they're just lucky the Red Wings weren't healthy.

hahaha

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