[GDT] Around the NHL [December 2023]

[Jaimito]

 

 

 

 

 

 

[Snoop Hogg]

2 hours ago, Alflives said:

Jets are cooked. They have no chance without Connor. 

I don’t know about that. They’ve still got one of the best goalies in the league. 

[Bounce000]

Bedard’s release is nucking futs.

[Dom]

Flames choke, AGAIN. 

[Junkyard Dog]

Oilers Oiling with their high highs and low lows. 
 

After such an atrocious start they’ve now won their 8th game in a row. 

[Master Mind]

Gene Principe asking RNH question after question about Bedard.

 

I understand that Bedard is going to be a common talking point but it's already insufferable.

[D-Money]

9 minutes ago, Master Mind said:

Gene Principe… insufferable.

FTFY

[Miss Korea]

I don't see the Tkachuk penalty shot anywhere, kinda funny that the shooter gets ejected.

 

 

Jokes aside, was this flying pokecheck... legal?  In normal circumstances I can see this being called for a trip:

 

 

NHL Rule 24.4: The goalkeeper may attempt to stop the shot in any manner except by throwing his stick or any object, or by deliberately dislodging the goal, in which case a goal shall be awarded.

 

Also NHL Rule 24.4: When an infraction worthy of a minor penalty is committed by the goalkeeper during the shot causing it to fail, no penalty is assessed but the Referee shall permit the shot to be taken over again.

 

Kochetkov is a madman and deserves kudos for that crazy move, but I'm not sure which rule applies here.

[wai_lai416]

2 hours ago, Junkyard Dog said:

Oilers Oiling with their high highs and low lows. 
 

After such an atrocious start they’ve now won their 8th game in a row. 

they are literally back in a playoff spot already.. and unless they fall off the map again.. they are here to stay.. if they win all their game in hand.. they are realistically just 6 points back of the canucks.. after their start... considering they were like what 17-18 points back at 1 point? 

[the destroyer of worlds]

 

[wai_lai416]

1 hour ago, Miss Korea said:

I don't see the Tkachuk penalty shot anywhere, kinda funny that the shooter gets ejected.

 

 

Jokes aside, was this flying pokecheck... legal?  In normal circumstances I can see this being called for a trip:

 

 

NHL Rule 24.4: The goalkeeper may attempt to stop the shot in any manner except by throwing his stick or any object, or by deliberately dislodging the goal, in which case a goal shall be awarded.

 

Also NHL Rule 24.4: When an infraction worthy of a minor penalty is committed by the goalkeeper during the shot causing it to fail, no penalty is assessed but the Referee shall permit the shot to be taken over again.

 

Kochetkov is a madman and deserves kudos for that crazy move, but I'm not sure which rule applies here.

i mean kochetkov straight up missed the poke check.. trips him.. and he almost went flying head first into the board.. ya i'd be mad too.. it's 1 thing to poke check.. kochetkov here lunged himself forward and pretty much guarantees to send tkatchuk flying.. look at where the goalie started and where he ended.. he started almost touching the crease and ended up 1 feet out of the crease.. you can hate brady.. but that was a dangerous play.. he narrowly missed breaking his neck on that metal post

[Elias Pettersson]

1 hour ago, wai_lai416 said:

they are literally back in a playoff spot already.. and unless they fall off the map again.. they are here to stay.. if they win all their game in hand.. they are realistically just 6 points back of the canucks.. after their start... considering they were like what 17-18 points back at 1 point? 

 

They are not going to continue to win every game.  It’s like the Canucks when Boudreau took over.  Eventually they will come back down to earth.  Meanwhile, during our slump we haven’t lost 2 in a row, so we’ve been very consistent. Now that we’ve won 3 in a row we may go on a winning streak. The schedule for the rest of December isn’t that hard.  I could see us going 6-1 the rest of December…

Edited December 13, 2023 by Elias Pettersson

[wai_lai416]

9 minutes ago, Elias Pettersson said:

 

They are not going to continue to win every game.  It’s like the Canucks when Boudreau took over.  Eventually they will come back down to earth.  Meanwhile, during our slump we haven’t lost 2 in a row, so we’ve been very consistent. Now that we’ve won 3 in a row we may go on a winning streak. The schedule for the rest of December isn’t that hard.  I could see us going 6-1 the rest of December…

the difference is.. they are already back in a playoff spot.. vs we were never in a playoff spot nor close to one in december.. we can go 6-1.. just as easily as we can go 4-3.. we already lost the the sharks.. flyers playing super strong this season and we were thoroughly beaten by them.. Dallas is always going to be tough same with florida.. and i can see us losing to minnesota being a road game and an early 11am start.. the team rarely shows up for early morning games.

Edited December 13, 2023 by wai_lai416

[Elias Pettersson]

21 minutes ago, wai_lai416 said:

the difference is.. they are already back in a playoff spot.. vs we were never in a playoff spot nor close to one in december.. we can go 6-1.. just as easily as we can go 4-3.. we already lost the the sharks.. flyers playing super strong this season and we were thoroughly beaten by them.. Dallas is always going to be tough same with florida.. and i can see us losing to minnesota being a road game and an early 11am start.. the team rarely shows up for early morning games.

 

Edmonton isn’t technically in a playoff spot right now.  They may be only 1 point out, but they are also only 3 points out of the bottom 3 teams as well.  They won 8 in a row and are still not technically in a playoff spot, which tells you how bad they were.

 

They could easily lose 3-4 in a row.  Like I said, they can’t keep winning forever.  Their defence and goaltending didn’t change.  It’s the same players.  The Canucks made player changes to get better this year.  Edmonton hasn’t done anything. Same team that started the year.  Meanwhile Allvin is making more moves than all the other GM’s combined.

[wai_lai416]

11 minutes ago, Elias Pettersson said:

 

Edmonton isn’t technically in a playoff spot right now.  They may be only 1 point out, but they are also only 3 points out of the bottom 3 teams as well.  They won 8 in a row and are still not technically in a playoff spot, which tells you how bad they were.

 

They could easily lose 3-4 in a row.  Like I said, they can’t keep winning forever.  Their defence and goaltending didn’t change.  It’s the same players.  The Canucks made player changes to get better this year.  Edmonton hasn’t done anything. Same team that started the year.  Meanwhile Allvin is making more moves than all the other GM’s combined.

i'm going to say they'll win 1 of the 2 games in hand on the arizona.. as bad as we think the oilers defence and goaltending is to start the season.. their advance stats say they generate way more chances than us. and gives up less chances against than us despite we are claiming we are superior to them mcdavid and drai is back in their grooves.. if they weren't shooting blanks to start the season.. they prolly would have gotten a few more wins here and there despite their goaltending.. and we wouldn't be in this conversation about oilers able to catch us or not. i like the zadorov move.. but until we are able to split the hronek/hughes pair and spread the offense.. we are currently a 1 line team.. all our offence goes thru them.. and our supposively "scoring line" have offensively challenged players on the defence that can't generate or create space for the forward.. most night.. if they can dominate and exploit the offensive minded defenceman on our "shutdown" line which have been happening a lot in the last 6-7 weeks against the better teams.. we tend to look pretty lackluster and more often than not lose the game unless the goalie plays hero which haven't happened as much of late. i still think oilers will over take us.. they finished the season 19-2-1 last season with the exact same team you pointed out.. if their defence/goalie is as bad as you say it is.. going 19-2-1 should have been impossible? you can't fluke ur way to 19 wins out of 22 games even if you factor in luck.. the oilers.. at least offensively.. have another gear.. something we are lacking. 

[Miss Korea]

59 minutes ago, Elias Pettersson said:

They are not going to continue to win every game.  It’s like the Canucks when Boudreau took over.  Eventually they will come back down to earth.  Meanwhile, during our slump we haven’t lost 2 in a row, so we’ve been very consistent. Now that we’ve won 3 in a row we may go on a winning streak. The schedule for the rest of December isn’t that hard.  I could see us going 6-1 the rest of December…

 

25 minutes ago, Elias Pettersson said:

 

Edmonton isn’t technically in a playoff spot right now.  They may be only 1 point out, but they are also only 3 points out of the bottom 3 teams as well.  They won 8 in a row and are still not technically in a playoff spot, which tells you how bad they were.

 

They could easily lose 3-4 in a row.  Like I said, they can’t keep winning forever.  Their defence and goaltending didn’t change.  It’s the same players.  The Canucks made player changes to get better this year.  Edmonton hasn’t done anything. Same team that started the year.  Meanwhile Allvin is making more moves than all the other GM’s combined.

 

So the flip side of this argument is that the Oilers are indeed the same team as last year, which means they should be able to cruise into the playoffs.  Winning 50 regular season games is an achievement in itself - one that Vancouver has not experienced in over a decade.  It should be expected that McDavid and Draisaitl will score 2-3 points per game and just offense their way to victory, regardless of how porous they are in the backend.

 

It is entirely possible that the Oilers were playing well below their potential to start the year, and now they've finally come back to a level of play they're familiar with.  Their stellar goaltending might not be sustainable (Skinner and Pickard are killing it right now with a .938 SV% during the run), but their offensive production should be just fine.

 

By the way, this says nothing of how they're expected to perform in the playoffs.  But I am expecting them to at least make it.

[Elias Pettersson]

8 minutes ago, Miss Korea said:

 

 

So the flip side of this argument is that the Oilers are indeed the same team as last year, which means they should be able to cruise into the playoffs.  Winning 50 regular season games is an achievement in itself - one that Vancouver has not experienced in over a decade.  It should be expected that McDavid and Draisaitl will score 2-3 points per game and just offense their way to victory, regardless of how porous they are in the backend.

 

It is entirely possible that the Oilers were playing well below their potential to start the year, and now they've finally come back to a level of play they're familiar with.  Their stellar goaltending might not be sustainable (Skinner and Pickard are killing it right now with a .938 SV% during the run), but their offensive production should be just fine.

 

By the way, this says nothing of how they're expected to perform in the playoffs.  But I am expecting them to at least make it.

 

They had a horrendous start, so even if they play at the same level as last year, they still may not make the playoffs.  They’ve won 8 in a row and still aren’t technically in a playoff spot.  In order to win the same amount of games as last year, they would have to go 37-11-8 the rest of the year.  That would give them 109 points, which is what they got last year.  They’ve already lost 12 games, but you’re thinking they will only lose 11 more for the entire year.  That’s a .732 winning percentage.  Not gonna happen.  Not even Gretzky’s Oilers could do that.

 

Also, although McDavid has picked up his scoring pace substantially, Draisaitl has not. During their 8 game winning streak, McDavid has 23 points, but Draisaitl only has 10.  People bitching about Petey being in a slump, but he has 9 points in his last 10 games, so Draisaitl is pretty much in the same boat.  This tells me that there is something else that is pushing the Oilers to victory.  And you correctly pointed it out.  It’s their goaltending that is playing lights out.  If history repeats itself, their goaltending will go back to AHL level at some point, so Edmonton will start to lose again.  Draisaitl really needs to pick it up or else Edmonton will come back down to earth real quick…

[Elias Pettersson]

36 minutes ago, wai_lai416 said:

i'm going to say they'll win 1 of the 2 games in hand on the arizona.. as bad as we think the oilers defence and goaltending is to start the season.. their advance stats say they generate way more chances than us. and gives up less chances against than us despite we are claiming we are superior to them mcdavid and drai is back in their grooves.. if they weren't shooting blanks to start the season.. they prolly would have gotten a few more wins here and there despite their goaltending.. and we wouldn't be in this conversation about oilers able to catch us or not. i like the zadorov move.. but until we are able to split the hronek/hughes pair and spread the offense.. we are currently a 1 line team.. all our offence goes thru them.. and our supposively "scoring line" have offensively challenged players on the defence that can't generate or create space for the forward.. most night.. if they can dominate and exploit the offensive minded defenceman on our "shutdown" line which have been happening a lot in the last 6-7 weeks against the better teams.. we tend to look pretty lackluster and more often than not lose the game unless the goalie plays hero which haven't happened as much of late. i still think oilers will over take us.. they finished the season 19-2-1 last season with the exact same team you pointed out.. if their defence/goalie is as bad as you say it is.. going 19-2-1 should have been impossible? you can't fluke ur way to 19 wins out of 22 games even if you factor in luck.. the oilers.. at least offensively.. have another gear.. something we are lacking. 

 

Draisaitl only has 10 points in his last 8 games.  So he is not back in his groove at all.  McDavid is carrying the team with 23 points in the last 8 games.  At some point, they will come back down to earth.  They went from a 2 man show to a 1 man show.  At least the Canucks have 2 legit scoring lines.  Once Kuzy starts lighting it up again it’s game over.  We will probably challenge Vegas for the Western Conference title. 

[Miss Korea]

25 minutes ago, Elias Pettersson said:

 

They had a horrendous start, so even if they play at the same level as last year, they still may not make the playoffs.  They’ve won 8 in a row and still aren’t technically in a playoff spot.  In order to win the same amount of games as last year, they would have to go 37-11-8 the rest of the year.  That would give them 109 points, which is what they got last year.  They’ve already lost 12 games, but you’re thinking they will only lose 11 more for the entire year.  That’s a .732 winning percentage.  Not gonna happen.  Not even Gretzky’s Oilers could do that.

 

Also, although McDavid has picked up his scoring pace substantially, Draisaitl has not. During their 8 game winning streak, McDavid has 23 points, but Draisaitl only has 10.  People bitching about Petey being in a slump, but he has 9 points in his last 10 games, so Draisaitl is pretty much in the same boat.  This tells me that there is something else that is pushing the Oilers to victory.  And you correctly pointed it out.  It’s their goaltending that is playing lights out.  If history repeats itself, their goaltending will go back to AHL level at some point, so Edmonton will start to lose again.  Draisaitl really needs to pick it up or else Edmonton will come back down to earth real quick…

 

Maybe not 50 wins given the brutal start, but playoffs seem attainable now.  A wildcard spot is a distinct possibility.

 

21 minutes ago, Elias Pettersson said:

 

Draisaitl only has 10 points in his last 8 games.  So he is not back in his groove at all.  McDavid is carrying the team with 23 points in the last 8 games.  At some point, they will come back down to earth.  They went from a 2 man show to a 1 man show.  At least the Canucks have 2 legit scoring lines.  Once Kuzy starts lighting it up again it’s game over.  We will probably challenge Vegas for the Western Conference title. 

 

Just like with McDavid, I expect both Pettersson and Draisaitl to return to form sometime in the coming weeks.  Their offensive skills and creativity are undeniably top tier.  That is more reasonable than Kuzmenko, who analysts did warn about unsustainable finishing.  I'm sure Kuzy will be just fine but we can't expect 40G from him this year.

 

Again - you can spin the current Oilers' success as them getting it done without Draisaitl.  Imagine what they can do with him in fifth gear.  Even if their goaltending evaporates, the Oilers will still score goals.  7-5 is no way to win in the postseason, but it'll work just fine in the regular season.  

[wai_lai416]

29 minutes ago, Elias Pettersson said:

 

Draisaitl only has 10 points in his last 8 games.  So he is not back in his groove at all.  McDavid is carrying the team with 23 points in the last 8 games.  At some point, they will come back down to earth.  They went from a 2 man show to a 1 man show.  At least the Canucks have 2 legit scoring lines.  Once Kuzy starts lighting it up again it’s game over.  We will probably challenge Vegas for the Western Conference title. 

that's overly optimistic.. we were clobbered by vegas and colorado and haven't even played LA yet.. they are winning with a 1 man army.. imagine if he has backup.. actually bouchard and hyman have been doing great.. hyman have 13 points in 8 games.. bouchard have 18 points in a 13 game point streak? demko have been struggling in the last 12 games.. he have a gaa of 3 and sub .900 sv% 4 of the 12 is sub .850.. all those chances against that he saved in the beginning of the season is starting to balance out.. i expect the canucks to be a WC team.. i don't see how they catch vegas or LA.. and will likely battle it out with edmonton for the 3rd spot.. mcdavid is now fully back into his last season form.. so i expect him to carry his team to 3rd in the pacific unless he somehow have a significant/long term injury.. 

 

[Bob Long]

8 hours ago, Master Mind said:

Gene Principe asking RNH question after question about Bedard.

 

I understand that Bedard is going to be a common talking point but it's already insufferable.

 

Gene makes me wish for Scott Oake.

[Dom]

2 hours ago, wai_lai416 said:

that's overly optimistic.. we were clobbered by vegas and colorado and haven't even played LA yet.. they are winning with a 1 man army.. imagine if he has backup.. actually bouchard and hyman have been doing great.. hyman have 13 points in 8 games.. bouchard have 18 points in a 13 game point streak? demko have been struggling in the last 12 games.. he have a gaa of 3 and sub .900 sv% 4 of the 12 is sub .850.. all those chances against that he saved in the beginning of the season is starting to balance out.. i expect the canucks to be a WC team.. i don't see how they catch vegas or LA.. and will likely battle it out with edmonton for the 3rd spot.. mcdavid is now fully back into his last season form.. so i expect him to carry his team to 3rd in the pacific unless he somehow have a significant/long term injury.. 

 

You truly don't believe this team can stay top 3 in the division? What makes you think they cannot? They are 12 points ahead of Edmonton. As long as we stay the course there should be no reason why we don't finish top 3 in our division. Especially with Suter & Soucy drawing back into the lineup eventually. 

[Coconuts]

10 hours ago, Junkyard Dog said:

Oilers Oiling with their high highs and low lows. 
 

After such an atrocious start they’ve now won their 8th game in a row. 

 

They're a hard team to stop when they're going, top six heavy or not

[Alflives]

2 minutes ago, Coconuts said:

 

They're a hard team to stop when they're going, top six heavy or not

F the Coilers. They stink like the city they represent. 
#embracethehate

[Bob Long]

Just now, Alflives said:

F the Coilers. They stink like the city they represent. 
#embracethehate

 

Made the mistake of driving into north Edmonton once on a road trip