Fantasy Hockey - Seed of Chucky

[Tingkai]

Yeah, but the Leafs took down Buffalo (#1 in east), Atlanta (#2 in east) and the number 5 team in the east, twice.

[Asher]

Originally posted by snoopy369
Wait, so now random fans get to vote for the Vezina trophy? I'm impressed...

No, but it's actually a decent indicator. It shows things beyond raw statistics.

Luongo, for instance, has decent statistics but lets in really weak goals at bad moments to cost them the game. This is VERY uncharacteristic of Kipper, and when it happens it's usually only early in the season against weak teams.

It seems to happen to Luongo a lot these days.

[Asher]

On a slightly different topic, I found an article that touches on the widespread hatred of the Canucks (which is odd considering they're a team that isn't ever good enough to be usually hated): http://fiveholefanatics.blogspot.com...ucks-suck.html

You know, I was all prepared to like the Vancouver Canucks this year. Well, as much as anyone can like a hated divisional rival.

I guess what I mean is I was prepared to despise them less. Largely due to the fact that Nonis ejected the 3 scumbags that drew the majority of my contempt: Jovo, Bertuzzi and Ruutu.


Jovo because, well...I think he's an *******. He cheated as much as possible during the 03/04 series between the Flames and Canucks and then managed to whine childishly after their game 7 defeat. Something to the effect of:

"They won it on a horse**** call."

This after the refs missed blowing the play dead when a sweater was thrown onto the ice in the final minute of the game AND after Morrison slashed the stick out of Iginla's hands during the ensuing backcheck. Which of course resulted in Matt Cooke's tying goal. Not to mention the fact that Jovo purposely pushed Kiprusoff over during a Canuck powerplay in an earleir game, paving the way for a Naslund goal (and a Canuck victory). This guy had the gall to point a finger at the officials. As if complaining about the reffing after a loss wasn't poor enough.

Then there's that cheap punk Ruutu. Hammers tiny guys like Ritchie during preseason games, trips and goads everyone else and yet runs and turtles at every opportunity.

The inclusion of Bertuzzi is self-explanatory.

So with the expulsion of the above corruption I supposed I could go back to merely disliking Vancouver in the typical obligatory fashion...Until recently.

You see, Vancouver is mired in a losing streak. And with the losing has come the foot-stomping and the sniveling: not by a fringe player or green rookie either. By their supposed captain:

''After Iginla's goal, we had a lot of chances to get that third one but they ended up tying it up on, in my mind, a really flukey goal.''

says Naslund after the recent loss to the Flames. That's right. Calgary's tic-tac-toe passing play that culminated in Warrener's tying goal was flukey. Somehow. I guess maybe he was confusing it with Salo's double-deflection-off-two-players PP marker.

Not that it ended there. Here's what Naslund had to say after the 3-2 stinger against Red Wings last night:

"I thought (Bulis' penalty) was a borderline call and that could have turned the game around [...]we don't get the breaks right now."

Boo-hoo-hoo. I guess scoring goals without tripping the opposing goalie is probably where you should start focusing your energy there Nazzy.

This is what passes for a Captain on the West Coast? No wonder these guys missed the play-offs last year. And probably will this year. As intangible and amorphous as qualities like "leadership" and "character" may be, one can soundly say Marcus Naslund possesses only negligible amounts of either of them. What a loser.

Sorry Vancouver. You're back on "the list".

[snoopy369]

Originally posted by Asher

No, but it's actually a decent indicator. It shows things beyond raw statistics.

Luongo, for instance, has decent statistics but lets in really weak goals at bad moments to cost them the game. This is VERY uncharacteristic of Kipper, and when it happens it's usually only early in the season against weak teams.

It seems to happen to Luongo a lot these days.

Online polls are also sort of ... um ... proof that real democracy is a stupid idea?

I suspect any online MLB poll for AL MVP would hand it easily to Derek Jeter. The real vote will be different (though possibly ending in him, but not easily).

[Asher]

Originally posted by Tingkai
Yeah, but the Leafs took down Buffalo (#1 in east), Atlanta (#2 in east) and the number 5 team in the east, twice.

So I take it, then, that Calgary's 3-0 domination of the Anaheim Ducks makes them far more than "bottom feeders", if this is your rationale?

Because I know you don't watch the West...Anaheim's #1 in the West and Calgary handed them their first regulation loss of the reason, 11 games in.

[Tingkai]

Originally posted by Asher

Luongo, for instance, has decent statistics but lets in really weak goals at bad moments to cost them the game.

Luongo doesn't have great stats - 11th for GAA, 20th fo sav %.

But ironically (the guy you are trashing would be a better example of your theory), he's considered one of the better goalies in the league.

Under-rated goalies: Turco and Emery.

[Asher]

I know Luongo has been considered one of the better goalies in the league, but if you watched him actually play for the season, you'll see why he's a far cry from a Vezina candidate.

And I thought his stats were better -- I guess the recent games nailed them down.

[Tingkai]

Originally posted by Asher

So I take it, then, that Calgary's 3-0 domination of the Anaheim Ducks makes them far more than "bottom feeders", if this is your rationale?

Yup, congrats. Calgary and Philly have things in common. They both beat Anaheim and they're both bottom feeders who occassionally rise to the top for a brief bit of the spotlight before wallowing down into the murky depths.

[Asher]

Originally posted by Tingkai
Yup, congrats. Calgary and Philly have things in common. They both beat Anaheim and they're both bottom feeders who occassionally rise to the top for a brief bit of the spotlight before wallowing down into the murky depths.

How can you honestly say this as a fan of a team without a cup in 40 years and who missed the playoffs last season?

It's pretty funny to everyone who reads it.

[Ninot]

Toronto has lost to the struggeling Sens 3 times already. Montreal has beat the Sens twice in three tries.

[Kontiki]

Originally posted by Asher
On a slightly different topic, I found an article that touches on the widespread hatred of the Canucks (which is odd considering they're a team that isn't ever good enough to be usually hated): http://fiveholefanatics.blogspot.com...ucks-suck.html

The rantings on a blog of a Flames fan = widespread hatred of the Canucks? How amazingly odd indeed.

[Asher]

Originally posted by Kontiki
The rantings on a blog of a Flames fan = widespread hatred of the Canucks? How amazingly odd indeed.

No, but it puts into words why so many people really don't like the Canucks.

This is not a Calgary-only phenomenon, it seems like people in the west with exposure to Canuck sound-bites and whining tend to develop a disdain for the team.

[Asher]

I did laugh pretty hard though when Naslund credited Calgary's win to a "flukey goal", which other people described as "beautiful" and "tic-tac-toe"...when earlier in the game Salo's shot from the point deflected off two Flames players and then off the inside of the post and in.

He's either senile and confusing goals, or just really, really dumb.

[Asher]

The Leafs had an offensive explosion tonight against the toughest team in the league!

[Pekka]

I just made the most stupid bet in the world but what the hell.. Had 45 euros on my gaming account, so I just thought why not blow it all away.

Anaheim vs Chicago.. of course Anaheim will take this, but the odds were nice so I took Chicago for 10 euros.. that's x 5, so I get 50 euros in return, I mean that's 50 euros I won't be getting.

Then I placed the rest on Atlanta versus... Dallas. Placed my bets on Atlanta, gives me 80 euros in return if Atlanta wins.

So, if either one of them wins, I'm still winning money. Chances are not too good though. They can't both lose, can they?