The Official National Hockey League Appreciation Thread

[KarateKen]

Update on the Ovechkin injury, it is worse than originally reported.  He has a cracked fibula and is now expected to miss 4-6 weeks.  That timeline puts him possibly out of the lineup until after the first of the year. It is a tough break for Ovi and the Capitals, both who have started out very strong.  Ovi's 15 goals are the most by any player in the league this season entering today. The Capitals played the Avalanche on Thursday and lost 2-1.

Other winners on Nov 21 were the Golden Knights, Bruins, Red Wings, Devils, Blue Jackets, Blues, Flames, Blackhawks, and the Wild beat the Oilers 5-3. 

[sensei8]

So far, I found myself very optimistic over how my Golden Knights have preformed so far this season.

Great to see that the Knights are in first place in the Pacific Division with their having a 12-6.  

The Knights have edged in front of the Flames who have edged past Kings and Oilers respectively. I do need to keep an eye on the Canucks because they can be quite alarming at times and play that spoiler team at the wrong time.

It’s early in the season but my hope for the Knights this season a high in anticipation.

GO KNIGHTS!!

[KarateKen]

Very busy day in the NHL, every team played except for Leafs and Ducks.  Bob, you will be happy that your Golden Knights put up five goals in the second and beat the Canadians 5-2. 

Couple of notes: Sidney Crosby scored his 600th career goal on Saturday, making him the 21st player to do so. It was the only goal the Penguins scored in a 6-1 loss to Utah. It puts him second all-time among Penguins players, Mario Lemieux had 690, and Sid is also second among active players, with Ovi at 868.  Big milestone for the future hall of famer.  

The San Jose Sharks retired number 19 to honor Joe Thorton.  

OT games - Flames over Wild, Flyers over Blackhawks, Blue Jackets over Hurricanes.

Regulation game winners - Kings, Avalanche, Devils, Canucks, Bruins, Stars, Islanders, Sabers, Predators, and Oilers 

[KarateKen]

Only one game on Sunday, Toronto beat Utah 3-2.  

The Blues fired head coach Drew Bannister and hired Jim Montgomery who had been fired by the Bruins recently.  

[sensei8]

On 11/23/2024 at 9:17 PM, KarateKen said:

Very busy day in the NHL, every team played except for Leafs and Ducks.  Bob, you will be happy that your Golden Knights put up five goals in the second and beat the Canadians 5-2. 

Couple of notes: Sidney Crosby scored his 600th career goal on Saturday, making him the 21st player to do so. It was the only goal the Penguins scored in a 6-1 loss to Utah. It puts him second all-time among Penguins players, Mario Lemieux had 690, and Sid is also second among active players, with Ovi at 868.  Big milestone for the future hall of famer.  

The San Jose Sharks retired number 19 to honor Joe Thorton.  

OT games - Flames over Wild, Flyers over Blackhawks, Blue Jackets over Hurricanes.

Regulation game winners - Kings, Avalanche, Devils, Canucks, Bruins, Stars, Islanders, Sabers, Predators, and Oilers 

Yes, very happy to see the Knights come alive in the 2nd quarter with those 5 goals on the ice to beat the Canadians 6-2.

Crosby is such a great player overall. Yes, big milestone for the future HOFer.

GO KNIGHTS!!

[aurik]

On 11/24/2024 at 9:17 PM, KarateKen said:

Only one game on Sunday, Toronto beat Utah 3-2.  

The Blues fired head coach Drew Bannister and hired Jim Montgomery who had been fired by the Bruins recently.  

And so it begins, the Great NHL Coaching Carousel.  When a team doesn't perform up to expectations, it's much easier to fire the coach than it is to start moving players.  It isn't always the coach's fault per se, but the coach is always accountable.  I suspect the reason biggest reason that Drew Bannister lost his job is because Jim Montgomery became available.  Granted, the Blues were underperforming, but they had been underperforming for quite awhile.  Monty had been an assistant coach with the Blues from 2000-2022 and already had a good relationship with the Blues' management and most of the players.  So when he became available, the Blues snapped him up.  

In his first game as the Blues' head coach, they won 5-2, with a SOG advantage of 46-31.

I'm wondering which coach is next to lose his job in the Great Coaching Carousel -- the Avs have had some spectacular meltdowns this year.  Last night they got pummeled by the Lightning 8-2 -- at one point the Avs' goaltender was so frustrated he chucked his stick: https://www.sportsnet.ca/nhl/video/avalanches-georgiev-breaks-stick-in-frustration-after-giving-up-point-goal/

Edited November 26 by aurik

[sensei8]

The coach isn’t always at fault!! The head coach answers to those who are in a higher pay rate. The motto of WE WIN TOGETHER AND WE LOSE TOGETHER sounds good until accountability is required.

[KarateKen]

9 hours ago, aurik said:

And so it begins, the Great NHL Coaching Carousel.  When a team doesn't perform up to expectations, it's much easier to fire the coach than it is to start moving players.  It isn't always the coach's fault per se, but the coach is always accountable.  I suspect the reason biggest reason that Drew Bannister lost his job is because Jim Montgomery became available.  Granted, the Blues were underperforming, but they had been underperforming for quite awhile.  Monty had been an assistant coach with the Blues from 2000-2022 and already had a good relationship with the Blues' management and most of the players.  So when he became available, the Blues snapped him up.  

In his first game as the Blues' head coach, they won 5-2, with a SOG advantage of 46-31.

I'm wondering which coach is next to lose his job in the Great Coaching Carousel -- the Avs have had some spectacular meltdowns this year.  Last night they got pummeled by the Lightning 8-2 -- at one point the Avs' goaltender was so frustrated he chucked his stick: https://www.sportsnet.ca/nhl/video/avalanches-georgiev-breaks-stick-in-frustration-after-giving-up-point-goal/

Definitely.  There are some good coaches out there for hire and some teams that are struggling could pick one up.  I'm thinking Montreal because they have been off to a bad start and lost again tonight, or Pittsburg who has really struggled. Nashville also a possibility.  Would not surprise me at all if one of those teams makes a coaching change before the end of December. 

The other game today was Vancouver over Boston 2-0.  Tuesday is usually a big NHL night but this week only two games. There are 15 games tomorrow, so Wednesday will be packed, and no games on Thursday for Thanksgiving. 

[KarateKen]

Capitals goalie Charlie Lindgren did an unusual thing on Wednesday night, he scored a goal. As we know goalie goals are rare, however he did it in his own net! In an attempt to move the puck behind the net, Lindgren put it into the net by mistake.  What makes this even stranger is that the goal was awarded to Brayden Point of the Lightning, and it was for a hat trick, since he had two goals already in the game.  The ice is covered with hats and Point did not even know that was his goal at first.  A truly bizarre situation. The goal put the Lightning up 4-3, but the Capitals would come back and win it 5-4. 

Other winners on Thanksgiving Eve were the Blue, Red Wings, Wild, Hurricanes, Panthers, Penguins, Avs, Kings, Bruins, Flyers, Canadians, Blackhawks, Ducks, and Senators. 

 

Edited November 28 by KarateKen

[KarateKen]

The Jets who started out so well have slipped lately, they lost on Sunday 3-1 to Dallas.  The Jets now on a three-game losing streak and have dropped to second place in the division behind Minnesota.  Other winners were Vancouver, Boston, Columbs, and the Ducks. 

Taking a look at the standings as we are a little bit past the first quarter of the season...your first places teams are the Panthers, Capitals, Wild, and Golden Knights. 

The next top six in the east are Devils, Rangers, Bruins, Maple Leafs, Hurricanes, and Flyers, with Tampa only one point out.  In the west the next six are Jets, Kings, Stars, Canucks, Oilers, and Flames, with the Avs two points out.  Historically if you are in the top 8 on December 1 you have about a 75 percent chance of making the playoffs. That can be a little misleading though because it is mostly based on the top teams. 

The last place teams are Canadians, Penguins, Sharks, and Blackhawks.  These teams have a low chance of making the playoffs, but of the four I'd guess Pittsburgh is the one with the best chance.  Probably the only one who can realistically have a shot at it. 

Keep your stick on the ice!