2010-11 NHL Season discussion

[Chip R]

Seems like the Black Hawks just won the Stanley Cup a few weeks ago and tonight the new season begins.

[westofyou]

Wings are recharged and the BH have shed quite a number of name players.

The west is looking stacked, unsure of the east, but I have a feeling the Capitals are looking to clean up that stench they left on the ice when they were last playing.

[reds1869]

Can I cover my eyes during the CBJ opener? If so, I'll join the discussion.

[Joseph]

Go Hawks.

I expect a different Hawks team this year and like WOY said, the Wings are recharged. The old Norris division is sure up for grabs as is the Western Conference.

[New York Red]

Honest question: you guys - I assume - are from Reds country, so how did you become hockey fans?

I spent most of my life in Reds country, then moved to NY a few years ago. These people are crazy about hockey up here. They start playing soon after they're able to walk. Boys, girls, they all play. They install metal rings in their backyards, then fill them with water, wait for them to freeze, and play hockey on them during the winter.

Even in the summer, I'm used to seeing basketball goals in KY, OH and IN driveways .. but these people have hockey goals in their driveways (they don't even call them driveways ... lol .. they're "tarmacs"). It's crazy. I've been to a few Islander and Ranger games, and it's pretty cool live. But I can't develop the love otherwise.

[reds44]

Was really surprised with how bad the Hawks defense was last night. One of the reasons they won the cup with Niemi last year is because of how strong their defense was. I know 51 was out and we had Leddy making his debut on the blue line as a 19 year old, but Seabs look really bad and 4 was a -3 tonight. Turco facing 40+ shouldn't happen. Keith also played 34 minutes, a number that needs to come way down.

1 point on the road though, could have been worse. Sharpie and Hossa played like men.

[westofyou]

Originally Posted by New York Red

Honest question: you guys - I assume - are from Reds country, so how did you become hockey fans?

I spent my 1st 13 years in Michigan, we didn't play basketball in the winter. Played street hockey and floor hockey in gym, skated on lakes and if we were lucky someone's dad flooded the yard and made a rink. Dented the furnace with the puck when there was nothing else to do.

[NatiRedGals]

Thought id bump this back up! Our Jackets are playing some awesome hockey right now! Who knows so far were crushing expectations. Yes its early but who thought we would open up a team record 6-1 on the road? Chance to sweep Cali tonight up 1-0 at start of 2nd period against San Jose I got the broom!

[Brutus]

Originally Posted by NatiRedGals

Thought id bump this back up! Our Jackets are playing some awesome hockey right now! Who knows so far were crushing expectations. Yes its early but who thought we would open up a team record 6-1 on the road? Chance to sweep Cali tonight up 1-0 at start of 2nd period against San Jose I got the broom!

Wins against LA, Anaheim and San Jose. Darn impressive.

They're scoring and playing pretty good on the other end. Nash had the hat trick this evening. Definitely looking up. Of course, they started strong last year (though not this well) and tanked, so we'll see.

[westofyou]

What's "cali" ?

Oh it's that fictional place on the coast. :

BJ's are off to a nice start, other teams (BH) not so much... limit goals in this league and you'll get points, but you have to win at home because there is no way that the BJ's continue their road domination.

[cincrazy]

Originally Posted by westofyou

What's "cali" ?

Oh it's that fictional place on the coast. :

BJ's are off to a nice start, other teams (BH) not so much... limit goals in this league and you'll get points, but you have to win at home because there is no way that the BJ's continue their road domination.

In your opinion, are the Jackets a playoff-caliber team this year? I know next to nothing about the rest of the league, and I'm still evolving as a hockey fan. The Jackets start this season has me very interested, but can they keep it up? I'm just not certain of how good they are in comparision to everyone else.

[westofyou]

Originally Posted by cincrazy

In your opinion, are the Jackets a playoff-caliber team this year? I know next to nothing about the rest of the league, and I'm still evolving as a hockey fan. The Jackets start this season has me very interested, but can they keep it up? I'm just not certain of how good they are in comparision to everyone else.

Too early to tell, but their key will be defense, because in the end they aren't loaded offense wise. What's hard on them is they have to battle the 2 best teams in the west within their own division. I haven't seen too many BJ games yet so I'm really not up to speed on them, but I have seen a mess of west coast teams and any team that can sweep 3 of them in a row then they are playing good hockey at the moment.

[reds1869]

Another nice win for Columbus last night. Nash is absolutely on fire right now.

[Brutus]

Tonight the Blue Jackets picked up yet another road win, though this one was a less impressive 4-3 OT victory over the lowly Islanders.

Nonetheless, at the moment, the CBJ and the Red Wings are tied for the most points in the West.

And speaking of which, those two play one another in the annual pre-night OSU/Michigan contest on Friday.

[westofyou]

So, the BJ's have a good defense and Mason seems on his game, but man.... that team needs to rework their PP, just horrible, something like 7 for 44 and last in the league with 10 goals. They had a 2 man advantage for 2 minutes and got 1 shot off in the 3rd period today.

If they can get that aspect of the game to below average they'll be in the hunt for a spot, otherwise they'll end up looking up again this season.