Coconuts

I'm a little surprised Boston is still #1, 2011 was forever ago now I'd put both Edmonton and Toronto above Boston

You're about three years younger than me, we're in the exact same boat It's absolutely bizarre

We really need more up and coming Canadian tenders, we're the weakest we've been in goal in ages It could very well be Stuart Skinner in net at the next Olympics at this rate

As of today, probably Canada, but some of those names probably won't feature in the next Olympics Canada's skill probably wins out, but when looking at each of these two forward groups I might give the grit edge to the US, having both Tkachuk's and Miller up front probably makes them annoying to play against

It's gonna be weird seeing the next crop of hall of famers over the next 1-8 years, at least for me I started watching in the early 2000's and have already seen guys like Iggy, Sakic, and the twins get in, it's gonna be weird seeing the next wave, those who largely thrived during the 2010's and on, get in

There are several non-Edmonton McDavid fans the same way there have long been non-Washington Ovi fans and non-Pittsburgh Crosby fans, the same way many other fans around the league appreciate Hughes, Pettersson, and the twins One doesn't have to like McDavud or Draisaitl (or Kane, Perry, Wilson, Kucherov, and so on), but let's not pigeon hole individual player fandom, one doesn't need to like players to know talent when they see it Edmonton and Toronto are my two least favourite teams, but they do feature some of the league's top talents and stars garner fans, it is what is I don't root for the Kings but I'm not dure there's anyone on CFF who will sing Kopitar's praises more for example As for taking discussion elsewhere, that's the entire basis for General Hockey Discussion forum, and these monthly threads by extension Sure, CFF will always be Canuck-centric, but this is the forum section, along with the trade and rumours section, where broader NHL discussion is king, even if that discussion is largely Canucks driven At least that's why I make these threads now that Vintage has stepped back, because I find more enjoyment in tracking the league than I do simply tracking the Canucks, even on CDC there was room for broader hockey discussion We don't have to agree, we don't even have to get along, but I'm not cool with telling folks to leave regardless of which teams and players they like or dislike, that defeats the purpose of having sections for such discussion at all Some folks hate Ovi for political Putin related reasons, some don't, folks on both sides of the spectrum still post here, folks can coexist Lot of folks on CFF provide valuable hockey insight, none should be pressed to leave for having player or team related views (within reason of course, there are rules and the like) I vehemently disagree with telling folks they should leave over player related discussion

I know we joke about the team not having fans, but I will feel bad for longsuffering Coyotes fans if they do move the franchise

They gone

It's remarkable, Bergeron either won or was nominated for the Selke every season from the 2011-12 season up until he retired. Only a few players throughout NHL history have that kind of long-term grip on an NHL award.

Historically, for the type of player he is and what he's achieved, I think he's a unicorn. I'm not sure there's a comparable, if anything he will be the comparable going forward. I dug deeper into Kopitar and Barkov. Regarding players currently playing, Barkov may be closest. He's one a single Selke and a single Byng. Same size, just lighter. Barkov's had several highly productive seasons but hasn't quite demonstrated the same level of durability. Kopitar's won two Selke's and been nominated an additional two times. Barkov's one it once and been nominated one other time. Barkov's won a Byng and been nominated for another two, ultimately losing one to Kopitar. Kopitar's won two and been nominated an additional time. It's tough to gauge given their age difference, but they may end up having had similar careers. The caveat to this is Barkov doesn't have someone like Bergeron also jockeying for the Selke. Calling Barkov Kopitar-lite wouldn't be fair, but he'll need to win a few more individual awards and lead his team to championships to be in quite the same tier. Kopitar put up 20 in 20 in 11-12 and 26 in 26 in 13-14, Barkov would need to get closer to matching that. He had 16 in 21 last season as Florida fell short. Cups are a team achievement, but they still matter, particularly when you're considering two players who would be drivers if their teams have won/were to win. https://records.nhl.com/awards/trophies/lady-byng-memorial-trophy https://records.nhl.com/awards/trophies/frank-j-selke-trophy

I'd be curious to see what you find

It's possible I'd be curious to see the breakout pass data for Hughes

There isn't one, not of his caliber. Barkov is the same height but roughly 20 pounds lighter. I describe him as a better Getzlaf. They're roughly the same size, played the same position, but Kopitar has a much more complete toolkit. Getlaf's career high was 91, Kopitar's is 92. Getzlaf only put up 1019 points in 1157 games though. Getzlaf's playoff production was higher though, 120 in 125. They're probably similar tier playmakers, Getzlaf put up 282 goals and 737, he was an oddball in that he was a playmaking power forward. Kopitar's put up 419 goals and 790 assists. Getzlaf had 960 PIMS, Kopitar has 344, this likely reflects Getzlaf's playing like a more traditional power forward whereas that's just a piece of Kopitar's toolbox. Where they really diverge is Getzlaf's legacy being affected by international golds, but I personally throw that out the window when comparing him to Kopitar, Kopitar was never going to achieve any of that as a Slovenian. Getzlaf never won any individual NHL awards.

He does This is from December, but I doubt anyone's overtaken him since

Should've drafted Kopitarz. But for real, dude us a unicorn. Top line center, good on draws, Selke caliber two-way play, elevates his game come playoff time, leads his team in points most years. He's got a power forward frame and can't really be intimidated either. 6'3", 225. If not for Bergeron he'd have more than a pair of Selke's, he may very well add another this season. 1209 points in 1370 games, 77 points in 92 playoff games. He's incredibly durable despite the tough matchups he's always taken on. Two Selke's, two cups, two Lady Byngs, some sort of Leadership Award. If he was from a more prestigious hockey nation he'd likely have a bunch of gold and silver to go with it.

This video explains things well, he's one of the most relentless and dynamic talents in the league. I'm not sure there's a guy more driven to win than Mac tbh, or anyone who hates losing more. It's not just that he possesses dynamic speed and skill, but he's so smart and knows how to utilize his toolbox. As the video mentions, for a star his style is also more physical, he's not a player you can bully out of a game because he's already engaging that way from the get go.

Hellebuyck has truly been in a league of his own this season Maybe Demko will win a Vezina some year but it won't be this one

Agreed Don't let Buffalo being disappointing fool you, Power is a phenomenally talented young D

https://www.sportsnet.ca/nhl/article/nhl-arizona-coyotes-preparing-for-possible-relocation-to-utah/

Mac at full speed is terrifying if your team is playing him, but it's so fun to watch

I get that some folks are skeptical of Seravalli but there's been a lot of smoke around this, Friedman has spoken about it previously as well

Him and Kopitar have long been Canuck killers but they've also been players I'm a fan of. I will always sing Kopitar's praises in particular, I wish he'd done what he's done as a King as a Canuck. He's basically a better, two-way Getzlaf without the international accolades. But hey, kinda hard when he's from Slovenia. They could both be first ballot guys tbh.

I get why some folks don't like Drew, but those who try to dunk on him just make themselves look foolish. When it's all said and done he could potentially be a first ballot hall of famer. Two cups, a Norris, two Olympic golds, world junior gold, world cup of hockey gold, world championship silver, super series gold, Ivan Hlinka gold, 1000+ games, possibly 700+ points by the time he retires, NHL all-star, Olympic all-star. All he's missing for triple gold is a world championship gold and he could still get that. Even at 34 he's still a force, 50+ points this season and still one of the league's top minute munchers, as he has been for most of his NHL career.