Saturday, October 07, 2006
Season Preview
HI EVERYBODY!!!
This is going to be a fun 81-game season, I suspect. Predictions:
Flames final rank in W.C.: 2. There's a lot more reasons why the Flames should improve this season than there are reasons they should slide. Iginla had a subpar offensive year last year. They added an excellent scorer in Alex Tanguay (6th in the NHL last year in ESP/60, >50Gms). Based on age & current scoring rates, they don't have any forwards whose production is due for a drop, but they have several guys whose production is due to surge.
The defense should be, at worst, just about as good as last season. Phaneuf's role has changed with the departure of Leopold, and will no longer be so PP-heavy. My guess is that this may affect the PP, but that he can certainly take on the tough opponents alongside Regehr. A serious injury to Kipper -- or an "off-year" -- would obviously hurt the Flames, but I think we all understand now that starting the playoffs on the road is not a terrible position.
I have higher expectations for the Flames than any other team in the Western Conference, and I think those expectations are appropriate.
Oilers final rank in W.C.: 8-½. This is the fate of the Mac-T Oilers: look dynamite at times, incompetent at others, and live on the playoff bubble. I can't imagine why this season should be any different.
Stanley Cup Finals: Flames v. Sabres.
Team that surprises everyone to make the playoffs: Penguins.
Art Ross Trophy: Sidney Crosby
Hart Trophy: Sidney Crosby
Will we start seeing explicit complaints about the CBA this season, i.e. will the unified front crack? Oh, hell yes.
Score of tonight's game: Flames 4 Oilers 2. Tanguay scores, Iginla scores again, Lombardi gets a couple of helpers.
Go Flames? Go Flames.
This is going to be a fun 81-game season, I suspect. Predictions:
Flames final rank in W.C.: 2. There's a lot more reasons why the Flames should improve this season than there are reasons they should slide. Iginla had a subpar offensive year last year. They added an excellent scorer in Alex Tanguay (6th in the NHL last year in ESP/60, >50Gms). Based on age & current scoring rates, they don't have any forwards whose production is due for a drop, but they have several guys whose production is due to surge.
The defense should be, at worst, just about as good as last season. Phaneuf's role has changed with the departure of Leopold, and will no longer be so PP-heavy. My guess is that this may affect the PP, but that he can certainly take on the tough opponents alongside Regehr. A serious injury to Kipper -- or an "off-year" -- would obviously hurt the Flames, but I think we all understand now that starting the playoffs on the road is not a terrible position.
I have higher expectations for the Flames than any other team in the Western Conference, and I think those expectations are appropriate.
Oilers final rank in W.C.: 8-½. This is the fate of the Mac-T Oilers: look dynamite at times, incompetent at others, and live on the playoff bubble. I can't imagine why this season should be any different.
Stanley Cup Finals: Flames v. Sabres.
Team that surprises everyone to make the playoffs: Penguins.
Art Ross Trophy: Sidney Crosby
Hart Trophy: Sidney Crosby
Will we start seeing explicit complaints about the CBA this season, i.e. will the unified front crack? Oh, hell yes.
Score of tonight's game: Flames 4 Oilers 2. Tanguay scores, Iginla scores again, Lombardi gets a couple of helpers.
Go Flames? Go Flames.
# posted by Matt @ 11:52 am 
Comments:
A serious injury to Kipper -- or an "off-year" -- would obviously hurt the Flames
That's putting it mildly.
The Lames have trouble scoring 4 goals over five or six games, and now we expect to see them all chunked together? As Governor Tarkin would say, "I think you overestimate their chances" (hopefully to more accuracy)
Happy thought of the day: Calgary is ranked last in the West as of this morning. Check out NHL.com right now, or examine this artful screencap. I think it speaks for itself quite handily, no?
I just don't see Sidney Crosby leading the league in scoring and being Hart worthy this soon...if ever. Phenomenal talent but could he outscore a line of Horcoff-Smyth-Pisani head to head?
I like the Flames as I do every other Canadian team except for Ottawa. But I don't see the addition of one man turning them into an offensive powerhouse, unless of course his name is Gretzky, Lemieux, or Orr.
Oh and I'm not talking about Brent, Claude, or Colton.
Hey sci-fi geeks. Hope you can all put-down your light sabres long enough to get out and watch the game, maybe even with real people. We in Vancouver are heading to the Black Frog. Come on down and join us. Loxy, I know you're reading this. C'mon out and find yourself a good prairie boy. And bring all those Single friends of yours.
Leia called him "Governor." It's valid.
And the line is "Evacuate? In our moment of triumph? I think you seriously overestimate their chances!"
I'm kind of pissed that they put out the DVD boxed set and then the individual movies with the theatrical cuts on the other side. Fuckers.
Grand Moff is just the title given to governors of a sector, thereby insuring that my geek creds remain intact. Hockey creds are another matter: either the Flames have used up their scoring quota for the opening week in their first two games, or this "new Calgary offense" might actually deserve some of the promotion its been getting. Please note, that "we've doubled our goals for" merely means that Calgary has caught up to the league average, which is why "some of the promotion" is not the same as "all of the promotion"
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A serious injury to Kipper -- or an "off-year" -- would obviously hurt the Flames
That's putting it mildly.
# posted by 
: October 07, 2006 2:54 pm
: October 07, 2006 2:54 pm The Lames have trouble scoring 4 goals over five or six games, and now we expect to see them all chunked together? As Governor Tarkin would say, "I think you overestimate their chances" (hopefully to more accuracy)
# posted by : October 07, 2006 3:04 pm
: October 07, 2006 3:04 pm Happy thought of the day: Calgary is ranked last in the West as of this morning. Check out NHL.com right now, or examine this artful screencap. I think it speaks for itself quite handily, no?
I just don't see Sidney Crosby leading the league in scoring and being Hart worthy this soon...if ever. Phenomenal talent but could he outscore a line of Horcoff-Smyth-Pisani head to head?
I like the Flames as I do every other Canadian team except for Ottawa. But I don't see the addition of one man turning them into an offensive powerhouse, unless of course his name is Gretzky, Lemieux, or Orr.
Oh and I'm not talking about Brent, Claude, or Colton.
# posted by : October 07, 2006 3:20 pm
: October 07, 2006 3:20 pm Hey sci-fi geeks. Hope you can all put-down your light sabres long enough to get out and watch the game, maybe even with real people. We in Vancouver are heading to the Black Frog. Come on down and join us. Loxy, I know you're reading this. C'mon out and find yourself a good prairie boy. And bring all those Single friends of yours.
Leia called him "Governor." It's valid.
And the line is "Evacuate? In our moment of triumph? I think you seriously overestimate their chances!"
I'm kind of pissed that they put out the DVD boxed set and then the individual movies with the theatrical cuts on the other side. Fuckers.
Grand Moff is just the title given to governors of a sector, thereby insuring that my geek creds remain intact. Hockey creds are another matter: either the Flames have used up their scoring quota for the opening week in their first two games, or this "new Calgary offense" might actually deserve some of the promotion its been getting. Please note, that "we've doubled our goals for" merely means that Calgary has caught up to the league average, which is why "some of the promotion" is not the same as "all of the promotion"
# posted by : October 09, 2006 3:48 pm
: October 09, 2006 3:48 pm Post a Comment
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