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The Everything NHL Thread

I really hope the Panthers beat out the Canes and Pens for the 8th spot. In fact, I hope they overtake the Sabres and drop us to 8th so that we can play the Bruins. We've had their number all season.
 
I really hope the Panthers beat out the Canes and Pens for the 8th spot. In fact, I hope they overtake the Sabres and drop us to 8th so that we can play the Bruins. We've had their number all season.

I doubt that the pens will finish out of playoffs and Florida seems to do this almost every year but always seem to have an extended period of losing that fucks them over.
 
Vancouver is bad lol

Based on what? The team is going through a rough transition period, fitting in a new top two forward halfway through the year while going without their no. 1 goalie for 20 something games, and now are just having trouble getting back to basics. Honestly they're a good team, just in a bad rut. They've got some really talented players and they just need to get back on track. At least they're in the playoff race, and if they keep playing the same way they played last night, they'll do fine. San Jose is the best team in the league, no question. Best offense, probably one of the better defenses, special teams, etc.

Although, Vancouver doesn't really have the best coaching or management (as in drafting, etc.) ever...
 
Vancouver will be hard pressed to make the playoffs and especially if they don't find a way to turn it around soon because there are to many good teams in the west that will over take them soon. Also San Jose absolutely dominated that game and they were lucky to even get one point.
 
I'm just going to call that they will make the playoffs, even if it is eighth. Honestly, keeping a team such as San Jose at bay for 59 minutes is pretty solid in my opinion. San Jose had to work for that win, with Dan Boyle logging 32 minutes of ice time. Honestly, Louie says exactly what I was going to say in this quote:

Roberto Luongo said:
We worked like animals for 59 minutes and played exactly the way we wanted to play against them. Unfortunately, they got that goal at the end. We knew coming in here it would be a good challenge for us. There was no pressure on our shoulders, and we played a great game within our system. We need to finish games, but we're starting to play well as a team.

Vancouver just wasn't generating any offense, as recently they have proven to have one of the worst break-outs in the league thanks to the defense playing around with the puck in their own zone. Too many turnovers and everyone is trying to do to much. They just need to get back to a simple game. I'm almost starting to dislike the Sedins due to their "Here brother, you shoot" followed by "Nah you take it".

Sorry, but I'm just tired of people dogging on the Canucks. It's a common topic around my area and most people just have no idea what they're talking about. For example:

B: "Hey Adam, did you catch the game last night?"
A: "Yup, kinda disappointing. They've just got to-"
B: "Yeah man they suck! Wow they only scored once out of the four powerplays they had!"
A: "Uhm, 25% isn't that bad actually, If they do that everynight they'll be improving they're special teams so much, plus Ryan Johnson is back on the penalty kill so hopefully that will get a boost."
B: "THAT SUCKS. Well good thing the Canucks still have Mats Sundin and Kevin Bieska! Sami Salo sucks! Put LaBarbera in goal! The Sedins are like twin sisters, not brothers, hahaha! Oh man I could jump on and off the bandwagon all day!"

ARG! :pirate:
 
Just popping in to find out what the hockey fans of Smogon think about this:

http://sports.espn.go.com/nhl/allstar2009/news/story?id=3855534

http://sports.yahoo.com/nhl/blog/pu...hreat-to-inj?urn=nhl,136496#remaining-content

Personally, I think it's utter bullshit that the NHL wants to suspend players for a game for not showing up this weekend to the All Star game. As a GM, the best option still looks to me to accept this "punishment" and make sure my players are rested and healthy for the final playoff push and the postseason in general. The Red Wings making a good postseason run does more for the league than having Nick Lidstrom show up to play a period of exhibition hockey.
 
I don't really have a side to this, so I'll just express my opinion about this Allstar fuck up. People missing the Young Stars game is just stupid. You'll never get another chance to play in one of them, and you don't really have the 'right' to say they want to 'rest' this weekend.

As for the actual Allstar game, people who have been voted in should be obligated to play, and not sit out because they don't want to go. As for the punishment of suspending the players for 1 game, I'm kind of for it. Players dropping out is part of the reason we're (NHL) getting raped money-wise and why the Allstar game is getting worse and worse each year. That being said, Lidstrom is probably the only player allowed to drop out, as he's fairly old (lol raped my opinion with the last sentence).
 
Maybe if they want people to show up to the all-star game they could, oh I don't know, make it matter even the slightest bit to the players and the fans. Every year people bitch about how much of a joke the game is, it doesn't resemble hockey, it isn't interesting, and outside of Getzlaf and Ovechkin in the Breakway Challenge last year, even the skills competition gets more boring every year. The fans as a whole seem totally willing to take or leave it, the players would obviously rather rest and get healthy than go fuck around, and with the game having no actual effect on the regular season or the playoffs it doesn't seem like there's too much appeal to anyone to bother. Players dropping out aren't why it isn't interesting, it's not interesting because it is a meaningless game no one cares about.

What I think is absolutely ridiculous, by the way, is not giving that suspension to Crosby. I don't care if he's there, he's not in the game. No one watches the press conferences except the people who report on them. He is going to have exactly the same effect on the all-star game as the random celebrities they con into showing up to get interviewed, which is zero. I have a hard time seeing this as a double standard, it is an incredibly stupid policy that goes about trying to improve a worthless event the wrong way but if you are going to use it, apply it to everyone. Crosby being in Montreal does absolutely nothing for making the game more interesting and he certainly isn't going to increase ratings by sitting in the stands. It's worth noting, too, that while he actually had a legitimate injury, he didn't show up last year either, whereas Datsyuk and Lidstrom both did. Please.
 
Actually I just realized something that might be pretty cool to see. In the NBA Allstar stuff, they have celebrities participate in an exhibition game...I think you know where I'm going with this ;)
 
While it isn't exactly NHL, I know from former conversations that people would be interested in seeing some Dutch hockey sometime. To see how the skill at our national level is.

Basicly the best game I can show you is actually online now, the dutch cup final. My hometown team (Nijmegen Devils playing in the black jerseys) are playing their arch rivals (Tilburg Trappers in the blue jerseys) in a really exciting game.

It's quite unique that a game is shown online, but it are just some tests to see if it's popular enough to keep doing. So if you are interested in seeing a nice game, even though its dutch commentary. Feel free to watch it.

If you happen to see some guy in a Canadiens shirt in the audience, that's me. Havent seen the game online yet, but I was there ;)

Can find the game here: http://www.sbs6.nl/web/show/id=321173/langid=43
 
This year's Allstar game was pretty decent, mainly because of the OT period (lol penalty by Komisarek), and to top it all off, there was a shootout. Too bad we can't get that amount of intensity throughout the entire game.
 
tl;dr... in fantasy hockey news..

I've been bitching about this for a while, but I've felt my team should be doing way better than what it has been. With the ensuing final playoff push for the Smogon league, I decided to take a more in depth look at the total stats to see where everyone would stand if this was a Roto league and not the more interesting H2H. Don't take this as me bitching about our current format, I love H2H and it's the main reason I won last year's league. That said, here's a look at Smogon Season 3: rotisserie style.

Assuming I did everything properly here's what a found with my personal analysis of each team:

Roto Rank. (H2H Rank) Team Name: Roto Points

1. (2) WHALERS ON THE MOON: 86 Points
No surprises here. Teifu once again has an extremely balanced team and with his latest additions I think he'll retain this slot the rest of the year. Ranks in the top four for 7/9 categories, one of the outliers being a 5th place rank in goals. He could easily move up in that stat when you look at who is in front of him. Not much else to say, best team on paper in the league. Biggest strength: balance. Biggest weakness: a very tight SV% category where right now he only grabs 4 points (though Teifu intentionally gives this one up for other stats).

2. (9) fighting zangooses: 73 Points
I'm not crazy after all! Probably the biggest surprise to everyone but me, the mighty zangooses barely edge out gr33n for the second spot. TBH, I think if I redo this each week through the end of the season my team will drop a couple spots. The Dutch Canadiens finally caught up in the goals category because I am still leeching off my early season success. So though I'm tied for first there, I won't be for much longer. My only other explanation for this high spot is people having better weeks than me on a regular basis and several lackluster weeks with a strong outing every now and then. In short, streaky play. Biggest strength: skater stats, +/- only one not in top 3. Biggest weakness: Goalie wins, my GAA and SV% have slowly moved up the charts in recent weeks though they're still not great but I rank 2nd to last in wins.

3. (4) Dutch Canadiens: 72.5 Points
Slightly better than the H2H rankings make gr33n out to be which is surprising considering the semi-hodgepodge goaltending unit. I though that losing Brodeur would hurt gr33n but turns out he's pretty solid in all 3 goalie stats. Only one stat outside the top 6 for all the categories, this is another all around balanced team. I honestly think gr33n would be in second if he didn't lose a couple weeks in there by not setting his roster. Brodeur coming back to a solid Devils team will definitely help him out come postseason. Definitely has the potential to upset someone come playoff time if he finds himself in the bottom half of the qualifiers given his goalscoring and goaltending potential. Biggest strength: Balance, as I said. Biggest weakness: Assists rank in the bottom half which is sort of surprising.

4. (3) Psycho's OKAYers: 62.5 Points
At a glance at the roster, you immediately notice that it's very stacked on defense, good at center and everything else doesn't look like it would be all that great. However, it appears based on Psycho's team that defense and center might actually be the positions to focus on. Ranking first in Assists and +/- and second in PPP, you know that a vast majority of those numbers come from the blueline and playmakers he has. The other key to success clearly comes from Miikka Kiprusoff, who helps Psycho to a first place ranking in goalie wins due to starting every game possible both IRL and in fantasy. The downside to this team, as he well knows, is the lack of a go to winger and grit. But with such overwhelming numbers elsewhere, it's no surprise that the OKAYers are more than OK (sorry had to be lame). Biggest strength: The collection of elite blueliners for a monstrous +80. Biggest weakness: lack of PIM and "poor" goalie stats to offset the wins.

5. (1) Glorious Shizzle: 61.5 Points
The untouchable H2H leader looks slightly more vulnerable in this format. Considering he ranked last in almost everything the first few weeks, it's pretty understandable that he's not ranked higher currently. Once Ovie got going, he started winning almost every week and the improvement in the stat totals reflects that. Key pickups have helped him along the way (not to mention an occasional streamed player), but you have to credit Ovechkin the most for the improvement in goals and SOG. Khabibulin stabilized his goalie stats but splitting time with Huet leaves Aldaron middle of the pack in that regard. Timely weekly wins (sometimes blowouts) clearly have made the difference to keep him in first in H2H. Biggest strength: Ovechkin. Ovie has a huge lead in SOG over any other player and his goal totals don't hurt either. Puts the Shizzle and 1st and 4th respectively. Biggest weakness: 6 points for most the other stat categories looks poor in the roto format but in H2H that's irrelevant. Somehow, this team finds a way to win each week.

6. (5) Wang and the Nutjobs: 60 Points
One of last year's bottom dwellers has done quite well this year despite making some questionable trades. The stellar season Zach Parise is having isn't hurting one bit, along with breakouts on the blueline from Weber and Wideman (why did I drop him again??). The most surprising numbers come the from the net, though. Clemmer and Mason (before his recent farewell) made Wang quite good here. The key to this team has been steady performance from the stars and unlikely numbers from the midrange guys. Biggest strength: Three 3rd place rankings in goals, +/- and GAA. Biggest weakness: second to last in PPP and Assists keep WER outside the top 3.

7. (12) Benderized: 60 Points
Like last year, we have a fairly inactive person with stellar goalies. The H2H numbers are a bit more truthful than the roto stats for this team, since top ranked GAA and SV% give Bender a huge boost up the ladder. Outside of a few solid skaters, this team isn't very imposing on that end compared to others in the league. Pair that with a lack of roster updating and you can understand why Bender ranks mostly in the bottom end everywhere but GAA and SV%. Biggest strength: Thomas/Luongo. Biggest weakness: Inactivity and a not so great combination of skaters.

8. (6) Meaty Minions: 50.5 Points
Surprisingly like Bender, the skater stats don't jump off the page; only Assists and SOG rank in the top half. Despite an improvement in production from Kovalchuk recently, the only bright spot remains goalie wins coming in at 2nd best. Partially attributed to the temporary 5 goalie system attempted earlier in the year (also probably why most the skaters are so low), it also doesn't hurt that Ryan Miller gets a lot of starts and has helped the Sabres win much more often this season. Also doesn't help that some of the big name skaters haven't had their best output this year. Biggest strength: Miller's starts. Biggest weakness: Goals and +/- have been a big struggle, ranking bottom 3 in both.

9. (7) Canadian Cuntlickers: 49 Points
Despite getting the second overall pick, it's clear Crosby is no Ovechkin in fantasy this time around. His biggest impact has been a boost in PIM which ranks 3rd. What looked like a formidable net duo (worked for me last season) has turned somewhat unreliable. Injuries have stolen a lot of starts and when Fleury has played, he's helped drag down the goale numbers thanks to a less than intimidating Penguins squad. Price, even when healthy, still seems to lose starts to Halak more often than last year. Despite that, the roto numbers for GAA and SV% are in the top half. However, SV% is so close that this can change every week. By far the biggest downfall to the Cuntlickers though is a last place ranking in both Goals and +/-. Biggest strength: PIM and SV% in the top 3. Biggest downfall: As I said, Goals and +/- have been killer.

10. (11) StallSquad: 46.5 Points
Hasn't made an appearance since sometime last November so I won't spend much time here. Could be higher if the rosters were set and updated thanks to players like Marleau and Chara but most of all Backstrom. The only reason Stall isn't dead last is thanks to excellent goalie stats. Biggest strength: Backstrom. Biggest weakness: Last league activity.. Thu Nov 20 8:44am EST.

11. (8) zerowingoall: 44.5 Points
Poor zerowing looks so awful in roto format thanks to playing usurped starters as his goaltenders (on not so stellar teams). Ranking last in Wins, GAA and 3rd to last in SV%, this is what sinks him down to the bottom. Average skater stats have made him competitive each week and more starts should help improve in that range. Sundin not wasting a slot also helps. His recent moves should also help those ailing goaltending numbers. Mason is the real deal and Mike Smith has been a rock all season. Biggest strength: Depth of quality skaters, top 3 in PPP, +/- and Assists. Biggest weakness: Formerly goaltending numbers, I think down the stretch SOG will be the Achilles heal if I had to pinpoint one (ranks second to last).

12. (10) Ghostbusters: 36 Points
The 3rd inactive, I won't spend much time here either. Has great players, but with the NHL's leading scorer benched for half the season, you're bound to have a drop off in points. Ranks dead last in PIM and SV%. Extremely weak at both wings too, all skater stats are bottom 6. Vesa Toskala hasn't helped in goal, leading to bottom 6 stats in that regard as well. Biggest strength: a non benched Lundqvist and Malkin. Biggest weakness: inactivity and the rest of the team in general.

PHEW! That took a long ass time so you fools better appreciate my scouting report. In case you wanted to see the Excel file I used to do this, that can be found here: https://www.msu.edu/~arasimcr/rotoscores.xls

Hope you enjoyed.
 
whoops my bad :(

it's a head to head league but i took the total stats and scored it as roto to see what differences there would be
 
- The shooting accuracy competition should replace its old-fashioned blue and red targets with pictures of Sean Avery's face.

Just read that on a column on TSN, funny to see I suggested the same thing during the skills competition on our irc channel.



Nice round up on the stats Carl, I didn't miss that much rosterwise though, maybe a day or 4-5 total. Too much for my liking though.
 
Excellent write-up, Carl. I think it would only be fair to attribute my performance this season to streaky play. To quote the great Happy Gilmore, "I don't call it luck, I call it... well, luck, what's your point?"
 
Are females able to derive pleasure from this form of underwater centipede or...?

Haha anyway you look at it that is funny stuff! Also I accepted the trade, I wanted to include a goalie but I figured you paid quite a bit for nabakov that I couldnt get him so
 
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