I have a hard time believing they will actually be able to finish this tournament. But I’m excited for some more hockey
but wait what if "Team A" (one of the play-in losers) WINS a slot in the FIRST lottery? Does that then mean that all the play-in losers (Teams 8-15) get a shot at that pick in the SECOND lottery? because if so that is bullshit
Chuffed that Kubalik got his 30th goal on what ended up being the last game of the season, would be nice to see him get a Calder nom
from Friedman: 9. Buffalo owner Kim Pegula announced this week that GM Jason Botterill will return. I checked in on New Jersey, but the Devils are not yet ready to make any proclamations. Interim GM Tom Fitzgerald said earlier this week that “the organization has been fantastic to me. They are allowing me to be the GM of this team, whether it’s an interim tag or not.” But I do think ownership is continuing its search at the executive level. Admittedly, I find it hard to read and am not sure about where this will go. Personally, I feel that, at some point, you have to make your call and end the uncertainty. 10. As for the coaching search, word is the Devils are eyeing at least four candidates. I believe that includes incumbent Alain Nasreddine, along with Gerard Gallant, Peter Laviolette and John Stevens. There may be one more. The wrinkle here is that Fitzgerald did the initial interviews, and will any of them want him as their boss should they be choice? It’s also possible ownership will want a conversation before any decision is made. It’s a unique time to try and hire someone. GALLANT ME PLEASE (we'll be stuck with Nas)
Hynes' system when he first started was the opposite of bland I would fucking hate if they hired Lavy
My guy doesn't even have a full season under his belt and like you said, one wonky groin and there is nothing. Call me crazy but I say fix the roster issues before you hang your hopes on gallant performing miracles.
If they had a league average backup goalie and/or a real coach, they would have been right in the playoff race Of course the roster needs work but they need a real coach
like, if they can land one of Drysdale/Sanderson coupled with Ty Smith and Bahl being close to breaking into the league next year, their D might actually become respectable for the future like I said though its all about coaching. Hynes/Nasredienne really had no type of defensive structure
I’m biased because of my fandom but I see both sides. You can call it a “play-in series” if you’d like but it’s a series to advance to the next round. So, Rangers get into the playoffs when they technically aren’t a playoff team. Canes see that as an unfair advantage for a team they have struggled against one on one but bested over the course of the season. If Rangers get an advantage out of this whole thing then Canes should at least try to get their own advantage as well.
I understand it being tricky because some teams have played more games than others. If the Canes were up by 2 points but had played more games then I see the argument for NYR. But the opposite is what actually happened. We’ve played fewer games and have more points. Getting tossed into a play-in is really dumb.
I cannot stress the fact that the NHL should absolutely cancel the season because whoever wins the cup this year will have an asterisk next to their name forever. But also playoff hockey for a good handful of months does sound appealing, especially when Buffalo can't even get into a 24-team format...
I don’t think it’s an asterisk either. I don’t understand that take tbh. The best teams will still be there.