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steveRbarker

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Everything posted by steveRbarker

  1. Solid 2nd game from the Nuckers. I was a little worried during a couple of those push back shifts, but its nice to see the Canucks bend, but not break. A couple weak plays by Lou, but a huge win to get out of the way. Edler still looks amazing out there. Hansen also may be my new hero. -cheers
  2. Man, I am looking for a HUGE playoffs from Luo. 6 GAA in the last 7 games. He has been dialed in since mid november (a less then flattering loss to the Hawks at home) and looks to carry this through the playoffs. With a full compliment of D-men in front of him, I expect nothing less. On another note, how dominant did Edler look last night? WOW. He was both physically dominant and offensively creative. By far our best puck mover from the back end, and our most physically imposing player. Looking forward to a quick 1st round. -cheers
  3. Interesting read. I am not too scared in the first round. I would not be surprised with a Canucks 4-0 sweep in the first round regardless of opponent. What would suprise me the most is if the series reached game 6. If I had to pick a team I would "fear" in the first round though, it would be Anaheim with Hiller. Hiller has the ability to steal games on the road, while the line of Ryan-Getzlaf-Perry can bully wins at home. Moreover the revitalized Selanne and underrated Visnovsky make their pp pretty lethal. However even with all that being said, still a relatively easy series win for the Nuckers. -cheers
  4. I agree with that last point. If the ice conditions were bad enough to completely throw off the Canucks, then why weren't the Preds affected as well? The simple fact is that the Preds are the hardest working team in the league, playing for arguably the best coach since the lockout. No coach has gotten as much out of such slim rosters as Trotz has in Nashville. They are one team in the West that does not take off days. If you want to beat the Preds, especially in Nashville, you need to out work them. Plain and Simple. That being said, the lack of defensemen on the Canucks undoubtedly has an adverse effect on the forwards. Do you think the Sedins or Kesler are going to commit 100% to an offensive play knowing that Oberg and Sauve are currently on the ice? (Although Sauve has looked like a champ out there.) -cheers
  5. Boston vs Philly is going to be a barn burning conference finals, barring a ridiculous meltdown in the previous couple rounds. Boston definitely won in the short term, but it will be interesting to see how they maneuver the cap moving forwards. Can Philly beat Boston without a top tier goalie? Can Boston beat Philly's deep defense without more legitimate scoring threats? Hopefully the Nuckers pick up their s*%t because we are looking like a beer league team. Although the mental strain of seeing a d-man going down every game has got to weigh on the players. Guys up front are going to be feeling a lot more pressure to play defense than they used to. Outside of the PP I wouldn't be expecting any running and gunning until we get back at least a legitimate top 4. As of right now our starting 6 is 30/30 in the NHL. Could be a cold one for the Heritage Classic, looks like a balmy -27 is in the forecast. I guess its better than a +20 Chinook. -cheers
  6. I would be pretty surprised if T-bay made a big splash. They have a very good thing going. Shaking up their chemistry at the deadline could do more harm than good. Landing Roloson was their big splash of the season. I doubt any of the top teams will be making splashes. I look at teams like LA or SJ who are on the cusp, and 'expected' a playoff spot at the beginning of the season. -cheers
  7. Lol @ whoever thinks Samuelsson can stick handle. The guy ranks so far down the Canuck's depth chart in terms of "hands". I would take Sedins, Burrows, Kesler, Tambellini, and Raymond over him in terms of stick handling. I also agree completely about his missed shots. I have never seen a guy miss so many wrist shots in my life. They either sail 4 feet wide or 10 feet high. I think he has lost several steps over the last couple seasons, and really just benefited from some hot line mates last season. His second half hot streak was an exception, not the rule. Question, if you could go back to the 2003 draft and "re-pick" our 23rd selection, do we take Mike Richards or Ryan Kesler? -cheers
  8. Stastny is my hero. I respect what Omark did. I dont respect how whiny and terrible Dan Ellis is. Great he did a spin-o-rama at the blue line, that doesnt stop you from making a save 3 seconds later. Tbay needs to get on Nabokov asap, cause Smith and Ellis are costing them games. -cheers
  9. Interesting conversation guys. I would have to agree with Jason on the European thing. From what I have heard/read etc... European players generally consider the World Championships and the Olympic Games as the highest level of achievement. While I personally think the Cup is more important, I dont think that sentiment translates across the pond. To be honest I would have put the C on Kesler's jersey. He may not be quite ready for it now, but neither was Mike Richards when he first put it on. Kesler is the emotional leader of this team, and in a couple seasons it will become apparent that he should have the C. -cheers
  10. I agree completely. Whoever thinks this game is just about icing name players is clearly missing the point. That is why the game has been so bogus over the years, because the league insists on bringing "Name" players who arent playing very well. Also, guys like Callahan and Karlsson are not "flavour of the month" type players. Order NHL centre ice, and gain some knowledge! -cheers
  11. I could be wrong, but i dont think that there is still a minimum representation. I was under the impression that the current all-star ballot is for the fan-voted starters, but that the captains would have free reign after that. Either way, I would not include Kovalchuk on my all-star team. He is a joke, the Devils are a joke, Lou is a joke, Maclean is a joke, and Vanderbeek is a joke. One thing that I am a little more excited for (Stress LITTLE) is that the captains will now have the ability to choose who participates in which skill challenge. Hopefully this will make the challenges a little more relevant, as people who are actually good at said challenges take part, instead of some hack the NHL plopped in there. Sorry Rafalski, but your 86mph hardest shot was a joke. Regardless, this allstar weekend should be pretty interesting. -cheers PS. how about Niemi being ON the ballot while Sharp/Semin AREN'T on the ballot? WTF bettmen?!
  12. As always, good article. One thing I can add, Gillis was on the radio saying that Ballard, while able to play, is still dealing with some lingering injuries. Apparently his hip was bothering him during the summer, and his recent respite from physical training (forced by his recent concussion) served to aggravate the injury. In essence, while he was healing from his concussion, a previous injury flared up. I have no doubts that if one of our dmen was to get injured Ballard could step in and play; but right now, it seems prudent to let him heal up. -cheers ps. lets make a trade!
  13. Yea I read that somewhere as well. Bettman is a joke. I can't put it any other way. -cheers
  14. Like many problems I have with the league, it seems to come back to the guys on top. Just grabbing a couple random names out of a hat, but could you imagine how awesome our game would be if Burkey or Holland was running the show. I am not sure Bettman every played a game of hockey in his life, because he sure doesn't seem to understand what he is watching. This suspension was, in my honest opinion, Bettman seizing an opportunity to bully a tall person. He is pissed off at Thornton for being born 6-4, a full 3 feet taller then him, and is slapping him with a 2 game suspension for it. Pretty soon clean open ice hit will be completely eliminated from the game. What a joke. -cheers
  15. Good article as usual. Id go: Smyl for the 80's, Linden for the 90's, and since I dont think anyone deserves it for the 00's, Robson should get the final nod. That being said, I am not sure that it would be appropriate to add Smyl and Linded, given that their numbers are already retired. My understanding of the "Ring of Honour" (based on other franchise's similar "rings") is that it is meant for players/coaches/etc. that made a HUGE contribution to the franchise, but just not quite enough to get their number retired. -cheers btw, great trade.
  16. Agreed. I have never been completely "sold" on Mason "Hands of Stone" Raymond, but Kesler is a stud. He is a Canadian passport away from being a Mike Richards clone. -cheers
  17. Sorry, forgot to add something. If Laperierre does not get suspended, this will once again prove that the NHL only cares about whether a player gets injured, and not whether the hit was dirty/clean. If they really want to send a message, Laperierre will be suspended for a blatantly dirty hit, despite the fact that Downie got up afterwards. I am awaiting the decision of Colin "the Joke" Campbell -cheers
  18. That was sure a tough one to watch. I think that the absence of Burrows is really showing in these first few games. While the Sedins will always put up points, the Kesler/Raymond second unit can not/will not produce as long as the Canucks are forced to skate a 3rd line checker with them. This is just one of my many theories, but IMO schaefer and desbiens etc are just keeping roster spots warm for Schroeder and Hodgson. Neither looked like NHL players after both (Hodgson especially was all but guaranteed a spot going into camp) seemed like "locks" heading into camp. Like many other young guns, they needed some seasoning in a PRO league. I wouldnt be suprised if both are skating in our lineup by the allstar break. That would transform our bottom six into... (assuming Burrows is back by this time) Malhotra/Torres/Hodgson Schoeder/Glass/Hansen Which IMO, is comparable to any bottom six in the league. -cheers
  19. I picked up Wish specifically because he did that to avery, out of respect I had to find a place on my bench for him! (that and him being, by default, the only dman on that team capable of running a PP.) The Hjalmarsson issue is a little different for me. I do really like how the NHL is finally stepping up and enforcing their new rules, but I also agree in part with Johnson. That was a good "hockey hit" that does happen several times every game. The difference is that normally the player who was hit gets up afterwards, and the hitter is assessed a 2 minute boarding penalty. IMO, the league needs to be VERY clear that it should not be the results of an action (ie. an injury) that deem the action suspension worthy, but the action itself. Props to the NHL for finally growing a pair and enforcing their own rules, but where the hell was this last year when NHL golden boy Evgeni Malkin planted Mitchell's head into the front row? Also, while i like that the NHL is finally setting some precedent, I think that if they start making suspensions based on injury, and not the action/intent of a hit, we are going to have a lot of "clean" checks get suspensions, and a big physical element of the game removed. -cheers
  20. yea I am kind of in the same boat with you on LA. Lots of people are taking them to go far in the WC, but i think they are just the "sexy pick" right now. While I do have confidence in Bernier, after Kopitar they seem to lack a pure offensive talent (at the forward position, JJ and Doughty oooze offense). Could you see a dark horse like Nashville/St. Louis upsetting someone in the first round? -cheers
  21. Do you consider LA to be a legit threat as well as the three teams mentioned? I really like their group moving forward, and think Bernier is going to be "this year's Rask". Also, didnt SJ get eliminated by CGY in the WCF in 04? -cheers
  22. Indeed it is a great film, I was gonna pick up a copy of Yojimbo at the Futureshop out here in Calgary, but it is $$$$$.
  23. What do you figure Bagosion for in the next few years. I am in a keep 4 keeper league wherein I already have Crosby, Getz, Perry, Voracek, Hall, and Subban. Could Bagosian crack my potential keepers at the end of the year?
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