*Lifts up Just5 to look for Troll*
- FlyersGrace

* A menacing green troll pops out from under Just5, with a knobby wodden club, armed with nothing but a loin cloth... Troll says, "who goes there"

What do you do...

I wouldn't assume the Rangers get in. They're playoff hopes every year relies on King Henrik Carrying them there. They've also lost a big piece in Clowe that they still haven't replaced. They struggled last year in large part because they lost a lot of toughness the offseason before, and they were a considerably softer team to play. Now that they've lost (and not replaced) Clowe, they are even softer than ever. Besides for the goaltending, we have the better team over them. Their defense isn't that much better than ours that it will be the difference maker in games. I would've been worried about NJ, but as of this moment they're in big trouble. I would definitely have the Flyers in the top 3 of our division. I see the Islanders for sure taking a wildcard spot, with the Rangers, the Jackets, possibly the Devils, and the Capitals competing for another wildcard spot.
- JAKEw1234

Hard to say how the Rangers will look under their new coach.

Had they brought back Torts, I'd probably agree with you.

1. He's going to the KHL. The quality of the Extraliga has fallen precipitously since the early 2000s.

2. Good idea... I'm sure there will be plenty of time in August.
- bmeltzer

July and Aug are brutal months for hockey

* A menacing green troll pops out from under Just5, with a knobby wodden club, armed with nothing but a loin cloth... Troll says, "who goes there"

What do you do...
- youarewrong

Behead it with a 2-handed battle axe. Duh!

I wouldn't assume the Rangers get in. They're playoff hopes every year relies on King Henrik Carrying them there. They've also lost a big piece in Clowe that they still haven't replaced. They struggled last year in large part because they lost a lot of toughness the offseason before, and they were a considerably softer team to play. Now that they've lost (and not replaced) Clowe, they are even softer than ever. Besides for the goaltending, we have the better team over them. Their defense isn't that much better than ours that it will be the difference maker in games. I would've been worried about NJ, but as of this moment they're in big trouble. I would definitely have the Flyers in the top 3 of our division. I see the Islanders for sure taking a wildcard spot, with the Rangers, the Jackets, possibly the Devils, and the Capitals competing for another wildcard spot.
- JAKEw1234

Marc Staal may never be the same player with his vision issues which is a shame for the young player. Bc of this yes the two d corps are not far apart

Behead it with a 2-handed battle axe. Duh!
- jmatchett383

Roll your D20.

Marc Staal may never be the same player with his vision issues which is a shame for the young player. Bc of this yes the two d corps are not far apart
- Just5

Bryan Berard Jr.

* A menacing green troll pops out from under Just5, with a knobby wodden club, armed with nothing but a loin cloth... Troll says, "who goes there"

What do you do...
- youarewrong

Haaa ok but tavares at 22 to giroux at 22. Sorry but Tavares is slightly ahead.


I know I know how dare I

Roll your D20.
- youarewrong

I'm assuming that's a D&D reference. If so, I will gladly do it, as long as I can listen to one of Blind Guardian, Rhapsody, or Manowar.

Marc Staal may never be the same player with his vision issues which is a shame for the young player. Bc of this yes the two d corps are not far apart
- Just5

Well I mean even if he was in top form and their defense was a lot better than ours, ours still isn't that bad that theirs would blow ours out of the water and single-handedly cause us to lose games against them. The difference maker in our games is always how Hank is playing that particular night. If he has a bit of an off night, there's a very good chance that we'll win. If he's on his game, there's a very small chance we'll win. Hopefully our tandem combined can bring us a level of goaltending that even gets into the area code of goaltending that the Ranger have. If we could even get close to that no one would ever question our playoff hopes.

Haaa ok but tavares at 22 to giroux at 22. Sorry but Tavares is slightly ahead.


I know I know how dare I
- Just5

I don't think it matters how well they do at certain ages... Giroux was 4th in the depth chart at center at age 22, Tavaras was number 1.

The question should be do you think Giroux has plateaued? If so, then Tavaras might pass him, but currently I think Giroux is the overall better player now, and if they both continue to grow, should keep pace and stay ahead.

Hard to say how the Rangers will look under their new coach.

Had they brought back Torts, I'd probably agree with you.
- johndewar

I think their new coach is a better fit for the team, but the toughness they've lost is still a huge cause of concern for them.

I'm assuming that's a D&D reference. If so, I will gladly do it, as long as I can listen to one of Blind Guardian, Rhapsody, or Manowar.
- jmatchett383

Ok carry on... D20 roll.

Ok carry on... D20 roll.
- youarewrong

I really have no clue how that thing works. Some multiplier and then you have to get a certain number...things like that and Magic were too much for me.

I don't think it matters how well they do at certain ages... Giroux was 4th in the depth chart at center at age 22, Tavaras was number 1.

The question should be do you think Giroux has plateaued? If so, then Tavaras might pass him, but currently I think Giroux is the overall better player now, and if they both continue to grow, should keep pace and stay ahead.
- youarewrong

yes giroux has plateued or is very close to it. Im not sure how much room Tavares has to grow but he has much more time to do it. Their both rather equal right now so I'm taking the younger of the two.

Haaa ok but tavares at 22 to giroux at 22. Sorry but Tavares is slightly ahead.


I know I know how dare I
- Just5

Does it even matter who's better? Giroux is still a superstar center and one of the top 5 players in the league right now. Tavares was a 1st overall pick. The difference is that when we picked Giroux, we were winning a lot and one of the top 10 teams in the league. When the Isles picked Tavares they were one of the bottom 3 teams in the whole league and losing most of their games.

Haaa ok but tavares at 22 to giroux at 22. Sorry but Tavares is slightly ahead.


I know I know how dare I
- Just5

From a scoring perspective, their numbers are quite similar.

The difference, as I see it, is Tavares was getting 18 minutes of ice time a night from the time he played his first game (he was the first pick of the draft, after all), whereas Giroux grew into his current role a bit more slowly.

Those Legion of Doom teams were fun, but ultimately, I don't think those teams were particularly deep.
- johndewar

Not on D (although the starting six was decent) but definitely deep up front.

From a scoring perspective, their numbers are quite similar.

The difference, as I see it, is Tavares was getting 18 minutes of ice time a night from the time he played his first game (he was the first pick of the draft, after all), whereas Giroux grew into his current role a bit more slowly.
- johndewar

Also, Tavares was the first player ever given the CHL exemption to be able to play a year early. Granted, it was instituted that year (Crosby would have been an exemption), but that speaks to how good he has been from day 1.

I really have no clue how that thing works. Some multiplier and then you have to get a certain number...things like that and Magic were too much for me.
- jmatchett383

I admit I am a dork. My friends and I tried D&D a few times, but I'm not sure we were doing it correctly...lol I'm not into the "pretend" part of it. Now MTG, that is my game. Still play every once in a while. Not a tourney player, but causal with friends... My game used to be WoW, before all the stupid expansions. Anything post Burning Crusiade was junk.

* A menacing green troll pops out from under Just5, with a knobby wodden club, armed with nothing but a loin cloth... Troll says, "who goes there"

What do you do...
- youarewrong

I put Just5 back down. Let him deal with it!

Hard to say how the Rangers will look under their new coach.

Had they brought back Torts, I'd probably agree with you.
- johndewar

So I sped read this and I had to stop and figure out what they'd find under their couch.
Sigh...
Long day.

I admit I am a dork. My friends and I tried D&D a few times, but I'm not sure we were doing it correctly...lol I'm not into the "pretend" part of it. Now MTG, that is my game. Still play every once in a while. Not a tourney player, but causal with friends... My game used to be WoW, before all the stupid expansions. Anything post Burning Crusiade was junk.
- youarewrong

Only thing I ever did was play Skyrim and f with people on Ventrillo.

Edit: WoW has horrible graphics and lag. It's been than, say, Asheron's Call, but it's still awful. For a game that has "War" in it's title, there is very little combat.

So I sped read this and I had to stop and figure out what they'd find under their couch.
Sigh...
Long day.
- FlyersGrace

I was ready to go home the second I stepped into the office this AM.

So I sped read this and I had to stop and figure out what they'd find under their couch.
Sigh...
Long day.
- FlyersGrace

Maybe they'll find Brad Richards game hiding down there