Buffalo Rick Posted October 30, 2022 Share Posted October 30, 2022 I was listening to the NHL channel on Sirius XM, some good hockey talk on there. They brought this subject up and it really is a head scratcher. I still think that the former coach got a raw deal. Boston has had many home game but in fairness they have been very good on defense. And the goaltending has been there. Toronto are the league favorites in the East and the Rangers, Panthers and Canes are right behind. Pittsburgh and Tampa get their share of respect but I believe both are in decline. I know my Sabres are being picked by some to get in as the surprise out of the teams like Ottawa and the Red Wings, who we play Monday. My biggest concerns are goaltending and youth. So is Boston as good as their start? I believe the Rangers are the best team in the East today. That might not be the case tomorrow. Yes they lost a couple of stinkers and the Blues have hit the skids too. But they are rebounding now. Toronto has yet to show their best. They will in due time. They have too much talent not to. I do not think that this old Boston team can hold up for the entire 82. So call me out if you wish. They will have their drop off. And I would expect soon. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TropicalFruitGirl26 Posted October 30, 2022 Share Posted October 30, 2022 Given what has transpired over the summer with coaching changes, guys getting surgeries, etc, most people had Boston possibly struggling to make the playoffs, however, I don't think many besides you @Hockey Junkie, had them completely in the toilet at the bottom of the standings! (Hey, you said call you out, my friend, and yea, you had them scraping the bottom of the barrel ) What some didn't account for was ye olde hockey pride where player find themselves in adverse situations and pull themselves up by the sweater straps and play above and beyond what anyone thought they could. And that is, what i believe, the Bruins have done to this point. With Toronto, Tampa, and even Florida to a degree still playing a bit "sleepy" early on, it is easy to see why the Bruins are able to sit where they are by playing with an "Us vs The World" mentality. Now, will they be able to maintain that top position for the entire season? I don't think so. They got Brad Marchand back a bit sooner than they thought, and that will certainly help them continue to play good hockey, but on the whole, and given that the percieved top three in the divsion aren't playing at full throttle yet, I think the Bruins will have trouble staying where they are in the Atlantic over the course of the season. That said, the top 4 in the division should STILL be, in no particular order: Bos, Fla, Tor, TB. If one or two of those teams falter, THEN you can throw one or two of DET, OTT, or BUF in there. As for the East in general, taking into account the Metro teams, I think the Rangers and Canes are the current class of that division, and I will sneak the Islanders back into the mix as I think a more fair scheduled team, backed by a looser offense should boost those guys, and I am NOT counting out the Penguins, even with their aging core, until they are out.....besides, that aging core still includes some of the best players in the league at their respective positions! Washington may be sliding out of contention (though I wouldn't completely count them out either...Ovechkin can certainly take over games when he wants to), and I say that about them only because of their missing key players and the rest of the division is still pretty tough overall. Tampa in decline? If you say so.... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
J0e Th0rnton Posted October 30, 2022 Share Posted October 30, 2022 (edited) 9 hours ago, Hockey Junkie said: I was listening to the NHL channel on Sirius XM, some good hockey talk on there. They brought this subject up and it really is a head scratcher. I still think that the former coach got a raw deal. Boston has had many home game but in fairness they have been very good on defense. And the goaltending has been there. Toronto are the league favorites in the East and the Rangers, Panthers and Canes are right behind. Pittsburgh and Tampa get their share of respect but I believe both are in decline. I know my Sabres are being picked by some to get in as the surprise out of the teams like Ottawa and the Red Wings, who we play Monday. My biggest concerns are goaltending and youth. So is Boston as good as their start? I believe the Rangers are the best team in the East today. That might not be the case tomorrow. Yes they lost a couple of stinkers and the Blues have hit the skids too. But they are rebounding now. Toronto has yet to show their best. They will in due time. They have too much talent not to. I do not think that this old Boston team can hold up for the entire 82. So call me out if you wish. They will have their drop off. And I would expect soon. The former coach Cassidy didn't really get a raw deal. He was hated by the team, however good he was at coaching. Bergeron would not resign until he was gone. Debrusk was asking for a trade, which he rescinded after the firing. Krejci hated cassidy so much he took a year off. The Bruins were 51-26-5 with Cassidy last year and lost to a very good team in round 1 going 7 games. They fired him because half the team didn't want to play for him anymore and were going to leave. My bosses are very good at churning out company success and profit. But a lot of the workers hate their guts right now and no longer want to work here. Edited October 30, 2022 by J0e Th0rnton Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Buffalo Rick Posted October 30, 2022 Author Share Posted October 30, 2022 2 hours ago, TropicalFruitGirl26 said: Given what has transpired over the summer with coaching changes, guys getting surgeries, etc, most people had Boston possibly struggling to make the playoffs, however, I don't think many besides you @Hockey Junkie, had them completely in the toilet at the bottom of the standings! (Hey, you said call you out, my friend, and yea, you had them scraping the bottom of the barrel ) What some didn't account for was ye olde hockey pride where player find themselves in adverse situations and pull themselves up by the sweater straps and play above and beyond what anyone thought they could. And that is, what i believe, the Bruins have done to this point. With Toronto, Tampa, and even Florida to a degree still playing a bit "sleepy" early on, it is easy to see why the Bruins are able to sit where they are by playing with an "Us vs The World" mentality. Now, will they be able to maintain that top position for the entire season? I don't think so. They got Brad Marchand back a bit sooner than they thought, and that will certainly help them continue to play good hockey, but on the whole, and given that the percieved top three in the divsion aren't playing at full throttle yet, I think the Bruins will have trouble staying where they are in the Atlantic over the course of the season. That said, the top 4 in the division should STILL be, in no particular order: Bos, Fla, Tor, TB. If one or two of those teams falter, THEN you can throw one or two of DET, OTT, or BUF in there. As for the East in general, taking into account the Metro teams, I think the Rangers and Canes are the current class of that division, and I will sneak the Islanders back into the mix as I think a more fair scheduled team, backed by a looser offense should boost those guys, and I am NOT counting out the Penguins, even with their aging core, until they are out.....besides, that aging core still includes some of the best players in the league at their respective positions! Washington may be sliding out of contention (though I wouldn't completely count them out either...Ovechkin can certainly take over games when he wants to), and I say that about them only because of their missing key players and the rest of the division is still pretty tough overall. Tampa in decline? If you say so.... I’m not going to give Boston anything after 9 games and most at home I believe. I agree with you they will taper off. And Tampa no longer strikes fear in me. The Rangers. Leafs and Florida on paper are the best teams in the East talent wise. As for my team, my biggest concern is goaltending Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TropicalFruitGirl26 Posted October 30, 2022 Share Posted October 30, 2022 (edited) 8 minutes ago, Hockey Junkie said: I’m not going to give Boston anything after 9 games and most at home I believe. I agree with you they will taper off. And Tampa no longer strikes fear in me. The Rangers. Leafs and Florida on paper are the best teams in the East talent wise. As for my team, my biggest concern is goaltending Nor should you give Boston anything after 9 games. I mean, they aren't loaded like the Blues after all, who still will make it to the Finals despite being near the bottom of the Central now, right? TB doesn't need to strike fear into anyone. They are still good enough to where if they just focus on their game, get their cohesion back with the new faces being worked in yet again, they will be fine. They will no longer dominate like they had the last three seasons, but doesn't mean they still can't win, even if it means edging out teams if need be. But back to the topic at hand.... Bruins have some issues still, but for their fans, they gotta love seeing them play as well as they are now and will ride that wave for as long as they can. And even with their issues, and the fact that I think they will have to work real hard to make the post season, I'd still place them as a better bet to get in than the three teams I think are up n coming in the division...which of course, are the Wings, Sens, and YOUR Boofalo Sabres. Edited October 30, 2022 by TropicalFruitGirl26 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Buffalo Rick Posted October 30, 2022 Author Share Posted October 30, 2022 7 minutes ago, TropicalFruitGirl26 said: Nor should you give Boston anything after 9 games. I mean, they aren't loaded like the Blues after all, who still will make it to the Finals despite being near the bottom of the Central now, right? TB doesn't need to strike fear into anyone. They are still good enough to where if they just focus on their game, get their cohesion back with the new faces being worked in yet again, they will be fine. They will no longer dominate like they had the last three seasons, but doesn't mean they still can't win, even if it means edging out teams if need be. But back to the topic at hand.... Bruins have some issues still, but for their fans, they gotta love seeing them play as well as they are now and will ride that wave for as long as they can. And even with their issues, and the fact that I think they will have to work real hard to make the post season, I'd still place them as a better bet to get in than the three teams I think are up n coming in the division...which of course, are the Wings, Sens, and YOUR Boofalo Sabres. Not a bad start for Sabres. They ran into two hot goalies last two. Lost one and beat one. Sure I’d feel better if we had Miller or Hasek Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Buffalo Rick Posted October 30, 2022 Author Share Posted October 30, 2022 50 minutes ago, TropicalFruitGirl26 said: Nor should you give Boston anything after 9 games. I mean, they aren't loaded like the Blues after all, who still will make it to the Finals despite being near the bottom of the Central now, right? TB doesn't need to strike fear into anyone. They are still good enough to where if they just focus on their game, get their cohesion back with the new faces being worked in yet again, they will be fine. They will no longer dominate like they had the last three seasons, but doesn't mean they still can't win, even if it means edging out teams if need be. But back to the topic at hand.... Bruins have some issues still, but for their fans, they gotta love seeing them play as well as they are now and will ride that wave for as long as they can. And even with their issues, and the fact that I think they will have to work real hard to make the post season, I'd still place them as a better bet to get in than the three teams I think are up n coming in the division...which of course, are the Wings, Sens, and YOUR Boofalo Sabres. You know that I do not understand the sudden drop off by the Blues but with their talent they better fix things fast or Berube will be gone Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CorkyM Posted October 30, 2022 Share Posted October 30, 2022 Yes, it’s very early, but hopefully not too early to beat the Penguins. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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