Kristian
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Everything posted by Kristian
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I'm betting it's the last time we see a Russian team with more than one true star player. That formula just hasn't worked for them. They went to the finals in 1998, but since then, they've underachieved like nobody else.
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Excellent :-)
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Only because Pavel Datsyuk played lights out in that game.
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On paper yes, but the Russians had shown nothing whatsoever.
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Indeed. Been like that the entire tournament.
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This Russian team just hasn't played well enough to be anywhere else. Makes you wonder why really, it's not like Team USA and Team Canada don't have huge stars as well, what makes the Russians different? Strange.
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Blame the refs who didn't bloe the whistle :flirt:
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Is Ed "Too Tall" Jones, too tall?
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Watching the Russia - Norway game. My god, the Russians are an uninspired bunch. Their PP for instance, consists of Ovechkin and Kovalchuk standing completely still waiting for a one-timer, while the three remaining Russians pass the puck around slower than the Sabres, only to be broken up by the inevitable Max-like pass attempt through the Norweigan box.
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Depends, both are standard in Euro sporstcasts, but why would it censor JPN?
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While I'm not sure it's directly related to the bigger ice, Chara has been a complete non-factor so far. I bet *you* could knock the Tank commander off the puck :w00t:
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BTW, this is how an international game should be played, regardless of rink size ;) :
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That game was partcularly bad, and as coincidence would have it, once of the refs was Canadian. I saw a ton of crosscheckings, blatant interferences at the blueline and slashings go uncalled as well but yesterdays game, IMHO, is not indicative of how the tournament has been called so far.
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Perhaps, but bear in mind the two teams we saw have exactly 3 games together, to their credit. I expect both to get better as their tournament progresses. And who looks forward to an Isles - Panthers game on any surface? :flirt:
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Don't get me wrong, I don't think the league would clamp down any, I just think a guy like Weber would be exposed on the larger surface, cause he isn't a partculary good skater, and also lacks the skills of a top 4 d-man.
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Never said it would, I only said good skaters would gain an advantage, and poor skaters would be at a disadvantage. I also said, if you're a good player, you're not likely to suffer much - For instance Team Canada have a couple of heavy defensemen, who are not the quickest to reach top speed, but since they can play the game, they won't suffer much, if at all, from playing on the bigger ice. I don't think Max is a very good example to argue the case in question though, as he was probably the most one-dimensional player I ever saw. I think guys like Mike Weber would suffer - He's serviceable on NHL ice, but would most likely suffer on the larger surface against faster players. And like I said, personally I wouldn't mind seeing less plugs in the league. But you don't have to make the switch to a bigger ice surface to achieve that, you just need to tell the refs to start calling all the clutch & grab BS, and interference.
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One thing we do know about the bigger ice, is that it gives the good skaters an edge, and the slowfooted players will most likely have less of a place in the game. Good or bad? I guess if you're a skilled player, you would still have a place in the game, but if you're a pylon not so much. I wouldn't mind less plugs in the game, but that's just me.
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IMHO, the two are closely related. You have two strong teams playing a game in which neither can really afford to lose, do you expect the puck to be in the slot much? I don't think the big ice has much impact on the number of big scoring chances. I do however think it takes away a some shots through traffic and soft goals on quick, surprising shots, because the puck is often further away from the net.
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Russian Vs. Slovakia still scoreless. Russian PP looking like the Sabres. Datsyuk on the puck, and 4 Russians standing DEAD still, watching.
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Hired: Tim Murray, GM and Craig Patrick, Advisor
Kristian replied to That Aud Smell's topic in The Aud Club
And it's not like Doug Gilmour weren't a plus in that deal as well. He pretty much was the reason the Sabres made the playoff that season. And then things went south with him the next season *insert pointless Lindy bashing here*. We came from a situation in which we were loaded down the middle, and we pretty much were stocked at that position since the early 2000's. It's hard to believe, but I believe he got so used to seeing centers switch to wing, and play reasonably well there, that he believed wingers could just as easily be plugged into the C position. Darcy definitely had his shortcomings when it came to building a team. Maybe, but it's not like Darcy did much to clear himself of the suspicions that he just wasn't a very good GM, after Quinn was out the door? -
While I'm no shootout fan, I'd say the only place the shootout makes any sense, is in the knockout stages of a tournament. You need to finish the game within a reasonable time frame. Imagine one semi-final ending in regulation, and another going to 3OT. You can make the argument than the team winning in regulation has earned the right to be better rested, but ultimately the sport is about entertainment, and a fresh team beating a dead tired team in the final isn't very entertaining. It's different in the NHL playoffs, as you're playing a series and not true knockout games - If you go to 3OT, your opponent suffers equally, or you get a few days off before the next series starts.
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Oshie beating Russia in the shootout. Talk about going with the hot hand.
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I understand why people debate this, but seriously - Who cares who were the better goaltender through his first 75 starts, or 500 starts for that matter? Right now we have two goalies, and by the looks of it, the better of the two won't be here next season. Can Enroth become the better of the two down the stretch? No idea, all I know is he needs to be better than he is now.
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Tavares has been a bad influence on him :P
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I agree, there's no guarantee he'll succeed in adjusting, let alone try. At least it's in his own hands though.