ihabs1993

Great read. This team could have, and probably should have, put up at least 2 or 3 cups. The funny thing is, they can't even blame the lockout because they actually got better by 11 points after the lockout... I agree that their only glaring weakness was their goaltending. Jeez, just thinking about what that team could have been is scary for a Canadiens fan... They were basically an all-star team that under preformed greatly in the post season

I don't know about other Habs fans, but I'm absolutely done with the poor officiating that I've seen over the past few seasons. Tonight was only a microcosm of what's been going on in recent history. First of all, let me start by saying that the hit thrown on Daniel Briere is borderline suspendable, let alone at least a minor penalty. The Predator player hit Briere well away from the net and aimed clearly for the head. Yet, no penalty. Next, why is it that every time a canadien draws a penalty, there is about a 50% chance that the referee will call a matching diving penalty? Personally, I blame Claude Julien who felt the need to "enlighten" the league last year when he blasted the Canadiens for diving. Subban comes flying up the ice, gets hooked all the way up the ice and nothing is called. Eventually, yes, Subban goes down easy, but where is the call when it is supposed to be made? Subban doesn't have to take the dive if the proper call is made. Finally, on the Eller no-goal. The referee called the play on the ice a good goal. After it was reviewed with no clear overturning evidence, the officials overturned the goal. To overturn the ruling o the ice, there must be irrefutable evidence that the call on the ice was wrong in order to overturn it. Again, it really didn't look clear if the puck was in the net or not, but the referee behind the net was emphatic in calling Eller's shot a good goal. The referee's threw out the rule book in this game to hand Montreal a loss.

I'm really shocked to hear from Flyers fans that Briere was anything but effective for them... He's one of the most clutch players in that franchise's recent history. In 68 playoff games with just the Flyers, Briere scored 72 points! And no one said, "Hooray, we got Daniel Briere! Now we have an excellent defensive forward!" If anyone thought Briere was going to kill penalties and win the Selke award is delusional. Yes Briere is having a slow start to the season, but I'm sure he'll turn it around

Well if this is true, the placement of Martin Biron on waivers makes way more sense... Unfortunately, the last thing the struggling New York Rangers need is a sideshow attraction so I'm not sure this would work for them right now

I would be all for this hit being legal until Lapierre throws that unnecessary shove. The initial contact wasn't late and Boyle turned making himself vulnerable. However, once Max throws that extra shot, he crossed the line much like the Stuart hit on Nash where he made first contact with the body but then threw an unnecessary head shot... Now my REAL problem with the hit.... If you watch the video again, look for the ref in the bottom right corner of the screen. HE DOESN'T CALL THE PENALTY! Not immediately at least! And you can even hear the announcer, Dave Strader, say, "And now the referee has his arm up." probably 5 seconds after the hit was made. The referees aren't calling penalties anymore! They're calling injuries! And if the Pacioretty-Chara incident taught us anything, it's that injury doesn't mean a damn thing when determining the legality of the hit! I mean Chara wasn't even punished for his hit! In fact, the league rebuilt the ice surface around dirty hits like that one so they could justify not suspending him even though he clearly extended his arms and wanted to seriously injure Max Pacioretty! The league consistently contradicts itself and it's so frustrating to see the refs and the committee for player safety punish for causing injury, then turn around and disregard injury all together. It would be like if the league punished Colton Orr for injuring George Parros! It's becoming absolute nonsense

Luongo is gunna have to stand on his head, thats for sure. Sharks' offense is so potent this year. Canucks need to match the Sharks' offense and improve their defense to have a shot. I think the game will be closer than you'd think

I agree with you. If there was a diving call made, is there actually an infraction to being with? In calling a dive, aren't you first saying, "There's nothing wrong with what the first player did initially, you just tried to sell it."? In calling that first penalty, you're acknowledging that the player might not have actually dove and you're just trying to even it up. It's a cowardly thing for officials to do. Just give the player the 2 minutes for diving, then diving stops. Some players look for that 4 on 4 so they'll just keep diving until it's out of our game

As a habs fan, its gotta be Marchand... I hate this guy's guts, but thats only because he does is job so well. Gets under your skin and has no problem embarrassing a goalie or two.The one problem I have with Marchand is his lack of character. Has no problem diving all over the place, but calls out others who do the same.

I think 3 games is about right. {layers need to realize that as soon as you decide to target the head, you're going to sit for a while. Stuart had the opportunity to just hit Nash in his upper body, taking him out of the play; however, Stuart decides to elevate his arms and hit the head. As far as I'm concerned, Stuart had a god second or two to think about what he was doing, and he still chose to hit Nash in the head. Easy call for Shanny IMO

Yeah like the fact that Marc-Andre Fleury not only preformed well in the playoffs, but that he was the best in the league... This year they won't have Vokoun to bail him out when he gets lit up by an eighth seeded team

I know! That was one of the most surprising things that happened! Pens are always a cup favorite. Defense is improving, now all they need is consistent goaltending the whole season and they could be champs at the end

In your opinion, who is the most overrated player in the league? What is the most overrated team? For me, Zdeno Chara has to be the most overrated player in the league. He's been on the back end of his career for the last 3 years, he doesn't match up well against the new speedy NHL, he is one of the dirtiest players in the league, yet everyone loves him because he can shoot the puck faster than anyone else in the game. He's too one dimensional. As for a team, the New York Rangers are not as great as everyone seems to believe. Last year, they were so bad offensively that Lundquvist had to backpack the team into the playoffs and then into the second round. I'm not sure if there's another team in the league that has as many underachievers as the Rangers. Nash and Richards don't even look like they care for the majority of the games, yet the league and broadcasters fall in love with them every year because they have an underdog aspect because of how poorly they play offensively. What say you internet?

The Boston Bruins will be a bubble team in April

There's alot I like about this article and alot I don't. First, of course I love the Habs being number one! Such a classic design! What I don't like is how low the kings are. I mean their purple jerseys were absolute garbage, but the new black ones are a nice nod to the Gretzky days. If I had a vote, I'd say Nashville has the worst Unis in all of sports. Such a violently bright yellow, makes them hard to watch.... Besides the fact that they're the Nashville Predators

@jammer2 Oh you know it! Especially since they won't have Clarkson to stand up for kessel when he decides to take a swing at one of those pesky Canadiens' forwards! At least 50 penalty minutes between the two clubs!!!

You didn't honestly think Letang should have won the Norris, did you? Personally, I think he's a glorified Marc-Andre Bergeron. Subban grew defensively last year and was better with and without the puck than Letang... Then again, I also don't see what the big deal was about Ryan Suter

I feel like Lavy's job lies completely on Mason's shoulders... Goaltending has been an issue in philly on and off since Hextall left to be honest. If Mason isn't a true number one goalie, it could be a short season for Lavy

@jammer2 Thanks buddy, glad to be here! Can't wait to be around here during the season

Haha don't blame me, blame EA Sports... They always seem to have this overwhelming bias for the maple leafs that makes Phil Kessel a hockey god. I just thought it would be interesting... Probably no truth to any of this

I'm 18 years old and I've been collecting since I was about 12. Right now, I have over 3 full binders of cards. If I had to guess, that's about 800 cards. It's just a ton of fun ripping open a pack (or 20) and getting excited about who you've found. Personally, I like the odd cards such as the Canadiens Alex Kovalev captain card, or the Vincent Lecavalier card that has him sporting the #8. I hope to collect for the rest of my life, finances permitting lol...

I might be the only one to say this, but I think it's Julien in Boston... The whole team took huge steps backwards in the offseason and the team had a real tough time holding leads in both the regular season and the playoffs. Not to mention that the whole team rests on Rask's shoulders so if he falls, the whole team falls

Is this Denis DeJordy?

Instead of using my own bias to determine how the NHL season would play out, I decided to let technology do all the work for me. Using NHL 14 on season mode, it's simple to run a quick simulation of the season including the playoffs. So I downloaded the latest rosters, took some notes, and here are the results. Having this season be the first in which the four division alignment is implemented, the season saw many new teams in the playoff hunt, and many regulars on the outside looking in. To start, the Pacific division standings by point totals were as follows (where an "x" is a clinched playoff spot, a "y" is a division title and a "z" is the conference champion): z Los Angeles: 101 x San Jose: 92 x Anaheim: 90 Phoenix: 88 Calgary: 86 Edmonton: 85 Vancouver: 75 It should be painfully obvious which team isn't in its normal standing here. The Vancouver Canucks had two main issues in this simulated season; one new and the other a repeating nightmare for Canucks fans. First, the Sedin twins did not produce to their level of skill this season, with Henrik only putting up a team leading 61 points while playing in all 82 games. This is a far cry from his 81 points in his last complete season and when your leading scorer only puts up 61 points, you better hope your secondary scoring picks up the slack. Unfortunately, they did not, starting with Daniel, who was second on the team with just 58 points which should come as no surprise with Henrik preforming as poorly as he did. Finally, and most importantly, Vancouver's goaltending was an issue once again. With Schneider in New Jersey, Eddie Lack comes in as backup tender, however, he ends up playing 43 games with a goals against average of 3.04 and a save percentage of .901. And the scapegoat of years past was not much better for the Canucks, as Luongo played an 18 win season. Truly a surprise in Vancouver. Next up, the Central Division, which produced more playoff teams than any other division. The standings are as follows: y St. Louis: 95 x Dallas: 94 x Winnipeg: 92 x Chicago: 90 x Minnesota: 89 Colorado: 72 Nashville: 65 Tons to talk about in this division. First, and my favorite point to talk about, the Winnipeg Jets make the playoffs for the first time since relocating from Atlanta! If this were to happen in reality this season, there would be no louder building in the league. The Jets were able to accomplish this feat on the phenomenal season put together by Blake Wheeler, who enjoyed a 36 goal campaign, totaling 62 points. The goaltending situation in Winnipeg was not pretty, however, they managed to salvage the season with a great offense. At the beginning of the season, Winnipeg signed none other than Mr. Comedy Central himself, Ilya Bryzgalov and he finished the regular season with a record of 28-24-1. The usual number one for Winnipeg, Ondrej Pavelec, played only 28 games with a record of 14-9-2. At any rate, it was a wildly successful season for the Jets. Next, the play of the Dallas Stars was a vast improvement from previous seasons.With Jamie Benn and newly acquired forward Tyler Seguin each putting together 60 point seasons, the Dallas Stars not only made the playoffs, but made a legitimate push for the divisional crown. Even 41 year-old Ray Whitney potted 50 points to help the Dallas Stars reach the playoffs. Next up is the Metropolitan Division, with its own unique shockers. The standings were as follows: y New Jersey: 105 x Pittsburgh: 100 x New York Rangers: 99 x Carolina: 95 Washington: 89 Philadelphia: 82 New York Islanders: 81 Columbus: 77 The New Jersey Devils, who had a painful season and tumultuous off season, managed to put together a truly amazing season even without their former leader Ilya Kovalchuk. First, their scoring was top notch, as long-time Devil, Travis Zajac had an outstanding campaign by putting up 73 points (19-54) and newcomer, Michael Ryder had a career high 72 point season. In goal, Schneider took the majority of the games, going 28-21-2 with a goals against of 2.20, but the real number one goalie was cover-boy Martin Brodeur, who went 21-5-2, with a goals against of 2.02 and a save percentage of .929. The Devils were designed as a top loaded team which ultimately won in 2013-14. Another shocking aspect of this division is Carolina's return to the post-season. Like New Jersey, Carolina had many issues in the lockout shortened season that started and ended with injury. The Hurricane's scoring was nothing to be desired, as Jeff Skinner led the team with 53 points in 80 games. The real hero of the season was the goaltending of Cam Ward, who went 31-17-3. Hopefully, Carolina can stay healthy and return to the playoffs just as the game predicts. Finally, the Atlantic Division is up next, and is arguably the most perplexing division in the simulation. The standings were as follows: z Toronto: 112 x Detroit: 102 x Tampa Bay: 102 x Montreal: 98 Florida: 92 Ottawa: 86 Boston: 84 Buffalo: 76 Very strange happenings in the Atlantic division. Let's start with the division champs, the Toronto Maple Leafs. The Leafs not only won the division, but won the President's trophy with a league best 112 points. The Leafs were able to return to the playoffs for a second straight season due to the dominance of Phil Kessel, who tallied an impressive 80 points (40-40). Also, the Leafs had great depth, with six players scoring at least 40 points. In goal, James Reimer won the goaltending battle with Jonathan Bernier by putting together a 31-13-2 season, with a goals against of 2.02 and save percentage of .932. Next, Tampa Bay returned with a vengeance, by tying the Red Wings with 92 points and earning a playoff birth for the first time in two years. Even with an injured Stephen Stamkos, who only played 39 games, and the departure of the team's long-time captain, Vincent Lecavalier, the Lightning had an impressive season on the back of Valtieri Filppula, who enjoyed a 62 point campaign. The real shockers in this division are the absence of Boston and Ottawa, two almost permanent playoff favorites. For Boston, their success a year ago in Tuukka Rask also became their failure, as Rask could only produce 24 wins in 54 appearances. Other notes: Year of the Panther? One huge surprise from this simulated season was the offensive explosiveness of the normally mediocre Florida Panthers. Florida both led the league in power play production, by clicking at a rate of 21.8%, and in goals per game, by potting 3.02 goals per game. Also, goaltender Jacob Markstrom was awarded the Calder Memorial Trophy for rookie of the year by posting a 28-24-1 record in 62 appearances. It is surprising that the Panthers did not manage to make the playoffs, however, this season could prove to be a break out year for the Panthers. If the simulation is accurate, the Panthers could be a very exciting team to wathc, which no one has been able to say for quite some time. Stat Leaders Goals: A. Ovechkin: 42 J. Carter: 40 P. Kessel: 40 Assists: R. Nugent-Hopkins: 56 T. Zajac: 54 J. Thornton: 53 Points: J. Tavares: 84 P. Datsyuk: 81 S. Crosby: 81 Playoffs Round 1: LA(1) vs. MIN(4): LA wins 4-2 TOR(1) vs. CAR(4): CAR wins 4-3 SJ(2) vs. ANA(3): SJ wins 4-0 DET(2) vs. TB(3): DET wins 4-2 STL(1) vs. CHI(4): CHI wins 4-2 NJ(1) vs. MTL(4): MTL wins 4-3 DAL(2) vs. WPG(3): DAL wins 4-1 PIT(2) vs. NYR(3): PIT wins 4-1 *President's Curse continues with Leafs being knocked out *Canadiens complete comeback after being down 3-0 to Devils Round 2: LA(1) vs. SJ(2): SJ wins 4-2 DAL(2) vs. CHI(4): CHI wins 4-1 DET(1) vs. CAR(4): CAR wins 4-1 PIT(2) vs. MTL(4): PIT wins 4-1 *Hurricanes complete another upset over Red Wings Round 3: SJ(2) vs. CHI (4): SJ wins 4-2 PIT(2) vs. CAR(4): PIT wins 4-1 Finals SJ(2) vs. PIT(2): PIT wins 4-2 *Pittsburgh wins the Stanley Cup Marc-Andre Fleury wins Conn Smythe Comments? Different Results? Let's talk about it! Thanks for reading - Ian (ihabs1993)