NHL PLayoffs 2009

[Tarrbot]

NWO, no excuses. I'm sorry you felt that way.

In actuality, I'm glad another rust belt city won.

 

[warwick.hoy]

Ugh, don't remind me. We got him for three more years too.

I can only hope Tangradi saves this deal.

-Mike

In Kunitz's defense. He is a gritty player, and you need a few of those guys on your team. Not everyone is going to be a star goal scorer. I fear him after the hurt he put on Timmo in the 1st game of the ECQFs.

I can't say he is a dirty player, but I didn't watch the entire playoffs. If I get a chance to follow next season as closely as the previous two (I gotta get my butt back in school), then I'll get a good look at him.

P.S. This is his second Stanley Cup

 

[marcray]

See? I don't get this. Up until they traded Hossa and lifted some much needed salary cap money, the Penguins sucked. It wasn't until the trade deadline and Pitt getting some key players (because Hossa was no longer on the payroll) that Pitt started winning.

So, you can basically thank Hossa for allowing Pitt to even make it to the finals.

Oh, and half of Detroit was playing injured. Some not so serious while others serious injuries.

Here's a partial list:

• Nicklas Lidstrom: He was speared in the testicles by Patrick Sharp during Game 3 against Chicago and underwent surgery on the area two days later. He Missed Games 4 and 5 against Chicago, then returned and played every game of the Cup finals.

• Rafalski: He ruptured a disk in his back between the first and second round but returned for Game 6 against Anaheim. “It got to the point where he could play again,” Holland said, “but if had been the regular season, he would have been out another week or two. He played through the pain of a herniated disk.”

• Kris Draper: He missed the first 10 games of the playoffs after taking a stick to the throat that tore cartilage in the neck area, Holland said. “As a precaution, we didn’t want him to get hit in the neck and have something go down the air pipe wrong.” Draper was out from Game 4 against Chicago to Game 5 against Pittsburgh because of a pulled groin.

• Pavel Datsyuk: Suffered a charley horse when he was hit along the boards and also was hit by a slap shot in his foot during Game 2 against Chicago, causing him to miss seven games. “The charley horse turned out to be more significant,” Holland said. “He never was 100% -- he didn’t have any thrust. A charley horse can be a 4-6-week injury, but he pushed through to play.”

• Dan Cleary: Played through a groin pull suffered in Game 4 against Pittsburgh. “He was very sore after Game 4, and we didn’t expect him to play in Game 5,” Holland said. “An MRI showed he had a significant groin injury, but he wanted to play.”

• Tomas Kopecky: Needed surgery after he fractured his right orbital bone following fight with Francois Beauchemin in Game 4 against Anaheim. Missed the rest of the playoffs.

So, to all the Pitt fans, congrats. It was a hard fought series. Just don't get cocky because you won against a seriously beat up team... barely.

Pittsburgh had their injuries too... to find a fair winner you have to look at it this way... it all came down to one game, one single game that decided the whole year, forget the rest, it's over, and each team fielded it's best players after two days of rest. If you have to talk about injuries then lets look at Pitts who lost one of their best players one 3rd of the way thru, advantage Detroit. Detroit were at home, advantage Detroit.

Again you can look at it another way. The season came down to one play and that was the puck going to Lidstrom with arguably an open net 5 seconds from the buzzer. Cue Fleury who had just a few days earlier been shown his way to the bench, with the season winning save. If anything, when I saw that play I was screaming about how casual Lidstrom appeared to be, but that's because Lidstrom has a defenseman's instinct with the puck, not a goalscorers who would have been their in half the time.

One game, one play.

 

[TheXym]

A bit late to reply, but no access at home and other obligations prevented me from hopping on. I'm not going to say ANYTHING about the officiating or Bettman. Game 7, the Pens showed up and wanted it, the Wings didn't.

The Pens outplayed the Wings in game 7. Period. They deserved the win. I hate it when I'm right about the opposition, the following quote is from May 28, post 442 in this thread from my preseries analysis:

Malkin has impressed me this postseason. He's definitely a Conn Smythe candidate. Maxime Talbot is the X-factor on the Pens offense to me. He's scored some timely goals

Talbot was the player on the Pens who scared me the most after Malkin and Crosby. Unfortunately he showed why. Fleury was amazing in the net for the Pens in both games six and seven. Brad Stuart was the goat for game 7, being burned for both goals. Hossa didn't show up for the series. At the right price the Wings may sign him, but his asking price went way down imho, as in a less than 3 million cap hit. Hudler didn't do much in the finals either, and he was a depth player I didn't want to lose. Now, I'm torn. Samuelsson played his way onto my keep list.

A lot of people are have made comments elsewhere about Crosby not shaking Lidstrom's hand in the line. While I agree it was classless, I also believe it was unintentional (at least I hope so). Plus, Chelios' background of blowing off handshakes takes a lot of the wind out of the sails in the argument here, though personally I feel the captain should be one of those leading the line if not at the front.

Bettman seemed to be on the verge of ecstasy when he handed the cup over, and though I still hate the poison dwarf with a passion, the Pens deserved this cup, just as Hossa deserves to be listed in the dictionary next to the definition of irony.

Congrats Pens, hopefully the 2010 cup finals will be the rubber match.

Edit: as far as the avatar bit, imho it's low class - the wings fans didn't do that last year. To those not doing it, thank you.

 

[Andrew Jones]

Congratulations to the Boston Bruins Awards Recipients!!!!


Julian!
Chara!!
Thomas!!

 

[blues_bassist]

Congratulations to the Boston Bruins Awards Recipients!!!!


Julian!
Chara!!
Thomas!!

Don't care what anyone says, the Bruins have one of the best logos in the NHL.