The 2011-2012 NHL Hockey Thread

It's time, Gents, for the start of another season.

Who's your team?

Your picks for Lord Stanley's Cup?

Thoughts, musings, or commentary on anything hockey related?

Here's the place to share!

Broons!

Lets go Wings!
To early for predictions based on anything but homer-ism.

heybatter said:

Broons!

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+1 repeat!

No hangover worries eh? Last team to repeat was the Winged Wheel, just sayin'. I want to see Tim Thomas again though, that's for sure.

Watched Don Cherry tonight .. the Habs-Leafs first period was really bad. Glad it's back, here in Hockeytown

slugg77 said:

Lets go Wings!
To early for predictions based on anything but homer-ism.

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Wings!!

Gotta say go Hawks!! I have been saying that for a lot of years. I just hope to see two cups in my lifetime.

slugg77 said:

Lets go Wings!
To early for predictions based on anything but homer-ism.

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+1 on both counts. Actually, +1000 to the Wings, and +1 to the logical comment.

The OP asked for hockey related thoughts as well, here is mine. I have a new co-manager at my dealership. He asked what I was up to tonight, and I said I was watching the new NHL season and was so excited I could hardly stand still. He looked at me like I was speaking in tongues. I asked if he was a fan, he said he was not. So I did the rational thing, I got great seats to next week Lake Erie Monsters (AHL and AVS affiliate) game for us and our wives. His concern was not understanding the game, I told him I would take care of that. He then asked if the goalie was allowed to use his hands..............No worries, I will make a convert out of him.

On a personal note, I got into hockey in the late 80's. I was flipping channels and a game was on between the Wings and the Flyers. I watched a young Steve Yzerman pull the most athletic move I had ever seen on the Flyer's goalie and score. I was hooked. From a geographic standpoint, my closest options at the time were the Pens (I will never root for a team from Pittsburgh unless the Pirates play the Yankees in the WS in my lifetime), the Wings, and the Sabres. After seeing that play, I was a Wing fan for life. I had to watch some pretty lousy teams for a while too, which made there last 15 years of success pretty great (especially since I am a Cleveland homer).

Here's to a great run again, go Wings.

slugg77 said:

The OP asked for hockey related thoughts as well, here is mine. I have a new co-manager at my dealership. He asked what I was up to tonight, and I said I was watching the new NHL season and was so excited I could hardly stand still. He looked at me like I was speaking in tongues. I asked if he was a fan, he said he was not. So I did the rational thing, I got great seats to next week Lake Erie Monsters (AHL and AVS affiliate) game for us and our wives. His concern was not understanding the game, I told him I would take care of that. He then asked if the goalie was allowed to use his hands..............No worries, I will make a convert out of him.

On a personal note, I got into hockey in the late 80's. I was flipping channels and a game was on between the Wings and the Flyers. I watched a young Steve Yzerman pull the most athletic move I had ever seen on the Flyer's goalie and score. I was hooked. From a geographic standpoint, my closest options at the time were the Pens (I will never root for a team from Pittsburgh unless the Pirates play the Yankees in the WS in my lifetime), the Wings, and the Sabres. After seeing that play, I was a Wing fan for life. I had to watch some pretty lousy teams for a while too, which made there last 15 years of success pretty great (especially since I am a Cleveland homer).

Here's to a great run again, go Wings.

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It's good to make converts, and watching the the game in person is the way to do it!

A casual friend of mine in college, also a big sports fan, was never a hockey fan. He loved international soccer, but I could never get him to even see a hockey game. I told him it was kind of sacreligious to be from Massachusetts and not be AT LEAST a casual fan.

When he graduated, he moved to Phoenix. Every now and then we'd exchange an email or phone call. One day, I convinced him to try out hockey by going to a Yotes game. Great seats were cheap, so he went. He loved it, started going more and more. He's a lifer now!!

We've built a strong, long distance friendship over the years, and he became the Best Man at my wedding. I'm not saying hockey is the thread that bound us as friends, but I'm not sure we would have realized how much we had in common and/or appreciate each other's senses of humor, etc, if we hadn't started talking more and more about hockey.

And by all means...anything hockey related, feel free to post in this thread.


Oh, yeah, and most of you who've been active in past years' hockey threads already know I'm a dyed in the wool Bs fan. I'm hoping like heck for a repeat, but it's a pretty hard feat to pull off in the NHL. I'm a big fan of the game in general, though, and I'll be watching any game that's on when I happen to be in front of the TV. Pretty excited for Winnipeg to have a team again. No offense to Atlanta, but they never should have had a team to begin with.

Go Pens Go!

Definitely San Jose's year.

DolimiteB said:

Definitely San Jose's year.

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deja vu....or not? Should be interesting to see how the D lines play this year. Oh, and a win is a win, and the season is LONG, but giving up 3 goals in the third is not how I wanted to start the season.

Of course, they are on pace for 82-0, who can complain!

I'm a San Jose fan this year.

Benn Ferriero, playing on a line with Clowe and Couture this season (I think), grew up a stone's throw from my parent's house (where I grew up). My dad played hockey with his dad when they were younger, and they remain friends. Both Benn and his brother Cody (AHL) are pros now, gotta root for the hometown boys...unless they're playing the Bruins.

Yeah, it's been San Jose's "year" for the last five years...regrettably.

DolimiteB said:

Yeah, it's been San Jose's "year" for the last five years...regrettably.

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Yeah it has. At some point, though, it HAS to come together for them. If Antti can regain his old form, they really could go places. I still don't think Nittymax is ever going to emerge as a bonafide number one, so I really think it's all going to depend on Niemi. I'm a firm believer in needing a very capable netminder in the playoffs. Given the way SJ's forwards have been prone to lifeless performances in the playoffs, I have to think that they'll need their goalie(s) to win at least one, maybe two games in each of their playoff series.

Interesting thoughts for the Eastern Conference ...

Washington ... have they finally added the right supporting talent to get their lazy Russian superstars to work hard in the playoffs and win it? Dunno.

Penguins ... if they get Sidney back at full strength at any point during the season, they are one of 'the teams to beat' ... if not, they're a good team toiling with all the others.

Montreal ... quite frankly, a better shot to do well than the Bruins ... IF Markov is/gets healthy. And IF the new young guys on defence mature well. They don't have to be a bunch of P.K.'s, but still decent. Remember, they lost game 7 in OT to the Bruins, without Cole, Pacioretti, Markov & Georges. A young Carey Price is more likely than an old Tim Thomas to repeat a superb season. Sure, there's a few "if"s there, but IF IF IF those things work out half-decent, the Habs could really make waves in the post-season at least as good as two seasons ago. Or things could go sideways and they struggle to make the postseason at all.

slugg77 said:

The OP asked for hockey related thoughts as well, here is mine. I have a new co-manager at my dealership. He asked what I was up to tonight, and I said I was watching the new NHL season and was so excited I could hardly stand still. He looked at me like I was speaking in tongues. I asked if he was a fan, he said he was not.

Click to expand...

Yeah, Cleveland is pretty barren ground for hockey interest.

Walter Sobchak said:

... When he graduated, he moved to Phoenix. Every now and then we'd exchange an email or phone call. One day, I convinced him to try out hockey by going to a Yotes game. Great seats were cheap, so he went. He loved it, started going more and more. He's a lifer now!!

He almost had to move to Winnipeg!!

We've built a strong, long distance friendship over the years, and he became the Best Man at my wedding. I'm not saying hockey is the thread that bound us as friends, but I'm not sure we would have realized how much we had in common and/or appreciate each other's senses of humor, etc, if we hadn't started talking more and more about hockey.

And by all means...anything hockey related, feel free to post in this thread.


Oh, yeah, and most of you who've been active in past years' hockey threads already know I'm a dyed in the wool Bs fan. I'm hoping like heck for a repeat, but it's a pretty hard feat to pull off in the NHL. I'm a big fan of the game in general, though, and I'll be watching any game that's on when I happen to be in front of the TV. Pretty excited for Winnipeg to have a team again. No offense to Atlanta, but they never should have had a team to begin with.

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Atlanta keeps sending their hockey teams to the Canadian prairies. ... Calgary ... Winnipeg ... now, if they could only claim a connection to Edmonton ...

"Yeah, Cleveland is pretty barren ground for hockey interest. "

I see what you did there, but you mis-spelled "Baron"

The Caps/Pens game was fun to watch, glad the refs got Ovi's goal to count and made the right call. I hate to be cliched, but the fight between Asham/Beagle (spelling might be off) was probably the highlight, only because of the body language of the winner. It was as he said "classless" and I agree, but when two teams that hate each other play I like to see some emotion peak through. And I thought it was funny, regardless of classlessness.

Wings looked good again, but it is early yet. Headed to a Monsters game tomorrow vs the Rochester Americans, I am pumped!