2016 Stanley Cup Finals
- Thread starter COOL MAN
- Start date
Well, it's a wrap! It has been a blast messaging with you gents! I can't wait until the Mounties tee it up in September!
We should each get a ring for hanging with this team since the preseason......I probably wear a size 11.5 (or maybe a 12) if anyone asks.
Lol....it has been a blast indeed...the Pens WON and nobody can ever take that away from them. 2015/16 goes down in history as the incredible season...Well done TEAM!!!
Do we have to stop the ride now?...I'll be here tomorrow on this thread lol...celebrating /thinking of all that these playoffs and the Pens brought....WOW....YES!!!!
Oh, I'll be sticking my nose in here this week at nights while I'm traveling with my boss for the first time :cry: but even he can't bring me down THIS week.
I'm glad for Kessel.....HCMS.....GMJR......and everyone else on the team......but I'm absolutely "glad-est" for Sid, who (as I said the other day) has absolutely earned right to give the middle finger to every single cement head inside and outside the League who'll refuse to give him his due no matter what he does.
Unfortunately, today isn't a holiday for yours truly.....anyway, allow me to open this morning with a couple early follow-up comments with the Cup now sitting on our mantle again
- I was impressed with the sheer amount (and quality) of tail following the Pens around on the ice after the Cup presentation. In particular, I liked Hagelin's groupies (and Kessel did A-OK on his own).
- I admit I was shocked to what extent Mario joined in the celebration; not only was he right in the middle of the group on the ice, but he was spraying plenty of champagne in the locker room. But I don't think anyone in the organization had a better time in the aftermath than Geno.
- I guess I'm assuming Matt Cullen will retire......I mean, he's not making zillions of dollars a season, and what else does he have to accomplish (and what better way to go out). But I absolutely loved it when his boy came right out and said (to JR, I think) that he hoped his old man would play another season.
- Two weeks later,. it's still amazing how universal the media proclamations were as to the superiority of the Sharks coming into the series.....and now, those same individuals preface every single interview by saying how much better the Pens were.
- It's also "funny" how so many of the know-it-alls.....who almost universally despise the Pens.....have been going out of their way (especially once the Pens took the 3-1 lead) to proclaim how forgettable this series was going to be immediately when it became apparent the Pens were better (and were going to win). You'd have never heard this kind of talk had it been an almighty Western team wrapping up the series (or, say, Boston or Washington out of the East).
- I'm obviously no fan of Logan Couture, but did you happen to catch his post-game comment when a reporter (I assume a local from the Bay Area) asked him to comment after stating the old "nobody expected you to be here" line ?? He quickly (and flatly) responded by saying "I did", which I found pleasantly candid.
- Meanwhile, I won't miss Pickles' smart-ass daily defiance with the Press (though I appreciated the fact that DeBoer backed off appropriately from his own early-series defiance the last few days)
- Will be anxious to hear the latest update from Matthew Barnaby later today about the "feud" he single-handedly invented last winter between Sid and Mario.
And the local morning sports show shock jocks are at it again here....
'Phil Kessel won the Stanley Cup , all you can eat hot dogs!' Followed by much guffaw's and laughter...then detailing why he could have won the Conn Smythe....the amount of Abbott & Costello confusion on these jokers here is hilarious. They truly have no way to accept or deal with this new reality.... the buthurt will continue for some time it seems, and frankly...LMFAO! Lap it up boys! Choke on those nachos and hot dogs...
No matter how ANYONE chooses to slice it The Pens officially and irrevocably WON this deal with the Leaves hands down...The Stanley Cup solidifies that permanently. ... A deal I freely admit I questioned the day it happened. ...even reporting some of what I viewed as 81's shortcomings in Toronto, when he was struggling earlier in the year. Well it seems I was (happily) WRONG on what ole Phil would bring to the table when it really mattered! His playoff numbers when he's managed to get there are downright gaudy. Congrats 81...you didn't deserve the constant media barrage and unrealistic expectations seen on an almost daily basis up in these parts...you are an incredibly deserving Stanley Cup Champion!
And Congrats to GMJR for all of the adjustments to this Champions roster...several of them were downright ninja in the night like....Daley, The ENTIRE HBK LINE!?! Schultz, Sully, Cullen, The kids who are no longer farm hands but legit NHLers, Fehr....so many acquisitions and inter organization moves that turned out as pure magic...
No more nonsense about what the Sharks aren't doing...it's ALL about what the 2016 Stanley Cup Champion Pittsburgh Penguins DID DO!:cool2:
'Phil Kessel won the Stanley Cup , all you can eat hot dogs!' Followed by much guffaw's and laughter...then detailing why he could have won the Conn Smythe....the amount of Abbott & Costello confusion on these jokers here is hilarious. They truly have no way to accept or deal with this new reality.... the buthurt will continue for some time it seems, and frankly...LMFAO! Lap it up boys! Choke on those nachos and hot dogs...
No matter how ANYONE chooses to slice it The Pens officially and irrevocably WON this deal with the Leaves hands down...The Stanley Cup solidifies that permanently. ... A deal I freely admit I questioned the day it happened. ...even reporting some of what I viewed as 81's shortcomings in Toronto, when he was struggling earlier in the year. Well it seems I was (happily) WRONG on what ole Phil would bring to the table when it really mattered! His playoff numbers when he's managed to get there are downright gaudy. Congrats 81...you didn't deserve the constant media barrage and unrealistic expectations seen on an almost daily basis up in these parts...you are an incredibly deserving Stanley Cup Champion!
And Congrats to GMJR for all of the adjustments to this Champions roster...several of them were downright ninja in the night like....Daley, The ENTIRE HBK LINE!?! Schultz, Sully, Cullen, The kids who are no longer farm hands but legit NHLers, Fehr....so many acquisitions and inter organization moves that turned out as pure magic...
No more nonsense about what the Sharks aren't doing...it's ALL about what the 2016 Stanley Cup Champion Pittsburgh Penguins DID DO!:cool2:
Great post....let us know on the Barnaby foot in mouth disease backtracking. ...if he's got the stones to admit it....
I read a piece last week analyzing the Kessel deal; I think it was from a Toronto scribe.
He was saying that Kapanen is currently viewed no better than a tossup to be a contributor (let alone a star) for the Leaves. If he can't absolutely motor......and I don't believe speed is considered a strength.....I can see that. As for Harrington, he's apparently already said to have been classified as an AHL-level skater. What's borderline hysterically ironic about that is how it's Harrington's old employer who just nuked the market for players like, well, him.
Add to that the almighty #1 they got from the Pens......which we already discussed previously is an absolute minimum 10 places lower (and upwards of 20) than they expected at the New Year......and you have a deal which has the potential to redefine the phrase big fat zero for the Leaves.
I'll go a bit further CM...how bout -1.2 million each and every year over the contracts term?
.......Thanks a lot Leaves...for pickin up the slack! ![[roll]](http://l.yimg.com/j/assets/img/emoticons/classic/roll.r191677.gif "roll [roll]")
I am not sure about you guys but I sat there last night hardly worried about the outcome. My only concern was that Murray would leak another Mr. Softie into the back of the net. Thank God Sullivan and the team realized that they needed to block almost everything and keep SJ from forcing Murray to move laterally much. (great skate save on the wrap attempt last night BTW) Goals 1 and 3 in game 4 and the goal last night were simply not the kind of goals any Pens fan wanted to see in the finals.
Back to the game, I never saw anything like this series. Last night in the 2nd period the Sharks had 12 shots on goal. By my back of the envelope calculation, that was the 2nd time that had more than 9 in any period in 6 games. That is absurd! One shot on goal in the first 19 minutes of the third yesterday and only 2 for the period that included a PP. That was the most obscene forecheck I have ever witnessed. It looked as if the game was 5 skaters vs 6. And keep in mind that all the talking heads had said the first 2 periods were the best the Sharks had played in the series. Frankly the series was no match. 6 games doesn't tell the story. The combo of Jones and poor finishing kept the series from being an ugly 4-game demolition.
And to think this entire team could return (minus Lovejoy and Cullen) for next season......
Back to the game, I never saw anything like this series. Last night in the 2nd period the Sharks had 12 shots on goal. By my back of the envelope calculation, that was the 2nd time that had more than 9 in any period in 6 games. That is absurd! One shot on goal in the first 19 minutes of the third yesterday and only 2 for the period that included a PP. That was the most obscene forecheck I have ever witnessed. It looked as if the game was 5 skaters vs 6. And keep in mind that all the talking heads had said the first 2 periods were the best the Sharks had played in the series. Frankly the series was no match. 6 games doesn't tell the story. The combo of Jones and poor finishing kept the series from being an ugly 4-game demolition.
And to think this entire team could return (minus Lovejoy and Cullen) for next season......
Had he waited another split second to shoot the puck I may have killed him.....Lordy he just held it and I was sure that the Shark was going to deflect it away!!!!
Not sure I had voted for Sid. I would have voted for Letang 1, Kessel 2, and Crosby 3.
Hard to argue with any of your 3 there OM1...Each of the aforementioned did yeoman's work at times throughout the playoff, and also looked spectacular at times... Missing any of those 3 and it's hard to imagine the Pens running the gauntlet.
I was (and still am) OK with Sid winning, probably because nobody really reached out and grabbed the trophy by the neck. Again, awarding him the trophy just to piss off the cement heads is a good enough reason to give him the prize. However, I'm absolutely convinced the trophy was on Kessel's stick; and if he'd scored a goal in either Game 5 or 6, he'd have won it.
But he didn't......and worse, had plenty of opportunities to do so in both games......which I myself believe eventually cost him. I also suspect enough members of the PHWA......I'm not sure how many are actual Smythe voters, though I read somewhere there are only 18 votes......are from Toronto (or sympathetic to the market/team as Canadians) which I think would have worked against him. For that reason alone, PK may not have been as close to the trophy as we'd like to think.
I admit I was not thinking about Letang as a possible winner until the post-game; I myself didn't think he did much coming back after the suspension in the Capitals series, and felt he was a relative non-factor in the Tampa series. But he obviously came back in the Finals in a serious way.....largely he wasn't physically abused as in the earlier series (including Round 1).....and didn't take any bad penalties. In retrospect, he probably would have been a fair choice given how the Finals broke for him offensively (while playing his customary 40 minutes/game).
I myself was on record after Game 4 as leaning toward Murray; but he'd have lost my vote after Game 5 (and probably would have fallen out of my Top 3).
Unlike so many of the wait-and-see plays the Penguins made, I thought Horny played that one exceptionally well. You can tell he wanted to make 100% sure he hit the cage.....and if nothing else, be absolutely sure he didn't ice the puck if he missed.....and he's enough of a pro to play that one right. Obviously, he knew the absolute right time time to pull the trigger.
Meanwhile, has anyone heard from Kunitz about his brain fart with the open goal ?? I heard today on NHLN Radio that Malkin admitted in the post-game he gave up on the play because he just assumed Kunitz was going to shoot.
Oh, one more interesting little tidbit I picked up from NHLN Radio today; not unexpectedly, Pittsburgh led US television ratings for the Finals with a 31 share, while San Jose came in second with a rating somewhere in the 7's.......that's right, less than 1/4 the ratings viewership of Pittsburgh.
I understand that Buffalo came in 3rd place.
I understand that Buffalo came in 3rd place.
Wow...that is quite the split...good on The Burgh and Western Pa...
I'd be curious and will try to look up the Cdn ratings...my money would be on Quebec leading the charge followed by either the West or Ontario on a per capita basis...I'd also wager your average Toronto fan watched very little (excluding others that aren't Leaf fans), if it were possible to split it that way...they're Leaf fans NOT hockey fans...and an always sour bunch...I imagine the Maritimes had a decent showing with Sid involved. ...
Well, that was my primary concern......and I hate to be so specific on that given the fact Murray is still so new in the League.
Happily, I believe the weaknesses in his game.....which were fairly exploited as the playoffs progressed.....are mechanical, and can be coached. But I admit I'm pleased he saw so little rubber (comparatively speaking) in the last two rounds.
OTOH, what appears to be his absolute greatest strength.....his mind......can't be coached by anyone, making him a guy clearly worth committing to.
HCMS talked about resiliency all playoff long. He could have pointed to Murray for his exhibit A in that regard. Nobody can doubt his mental toughness. I still cant get past the fact that the Pens blocked a record number of shots in the finals....something I don't believe is sustainable during the regular season as everyone would be battered and bruised to the point they couldn't play! But maybe the most underappreciated point to the Pens defense in my opinion is that the Pen's Defense just never allowed the Sharks to pass east-west near the crease. Murray was able to maintain his angles pretty much though 4 series. I lived in Raleigh for 5 seasons and saw a lot of Cam Ward. Murray reminds me of Ward without a strong glove (yet).
Interesting piece yesterday on tsn.ca which I'll assume t has seen.....Finals scribe Frank Seravalli reported the Conn Smythe voting was believed to have been THE closest ever. Based on a scale of 5 points for a 1st place vote, 3 points for 2nd, and 1 point for 3rd, Sid and Kessel polled as follows:
Sid - - 9,5,3 = 63 points
PK - - 7,8,1 = 60 points
Assuming 18 voters, the listed reconciliation indicates one voter didn't have Sid in his Top 3, and two didn't vote for Kessel. Guess I'd like to know who they were and their rationale (other than they just didn't like the two).
Sid - - 9,5,3 = 63 points
PK - - 7,8,1 = 60 points
Assuming 18 voters, the listed reconciliation indicates one voter didn't have Sid in his Top 3, and two didn't vote for Kessel. Guess I'd like to know who they were and their rationale (other than they just didn't like the two).
I could see Sid being left off a top 3 before Kessel. I thought Kessel was a solid #2 unless voters went with Jones or Pavelski in their top 2. Like I said a few days ago, I'd have put Crosby 3rd behind Letang (1) and Kessel (2). Bottom line was that nobody dominated through the playoffs. Sid had moments but was generally consistent. Kessel had more moments. (I am sure he wins had he buried anything in game 5 or 6.) Letang was beast mode at times. Arguments could be made for Murray. Bonino's work was undervalued.
