I think it will work insofar as Forsberg will make hay with the speed on those wings. He'll make the power play better too. Nashville is pretty fast but I think Trotz has them working very well as five-man units. They are disciplined. But this team is going as far as Vokoun takes them along with their Defense by committee strategy. Hey - worked for Carolina and Buffalo. This improves the Preds for sure. All the way to the Cup? Too hard to tell with these teams like Nashville and Detroit. They've been beating up on the shittiest teams in the league for the whole year - so their records tend to be a little inflated. Teams did trade for depth last year, but which teams made the best trades? I'd say Carolina and Edmonton did. Weight and Recchi? Roloson and Spacek? Or Arnason and no goalie? I think it's hindsight that makes those deals the best. Who thought Roloson and Spacek was a Cup-running deal when it happened (The Oilers were a fucking 8th place team!)? It turned out that way - but the Arnason/Theodore deal involved what was commonly thought to be the better players. I think Weight and Recchi were terribly unnecessary deals. No - I think deadline moves are sexy, but are really total crapshoots. You think your team has plugged a hole - maybe, maybe not. The best deals are the ones made before the season. Like Nashville getting Arnott. You're now going into the playoffs with Forsberg and Arnott as your top pivots - not to mention the career year that Legwand is having. That's not just deep - that's talent.
Nashville seems to be doing ok against very stiff competition, so the Central Division argument doesn't sway me. Though, like the SE, the Central doesn't offer stiff competition all season long like other, tougher divisions, which provides them an easier path to the play-offs. I don't know about the hindsight rosiness though. Theodore is crap. I suspect it is partying. Being seen with Paris Hilton revokes your elite hockey player status. And dropping E isn't going to help your focus. Arnason? Not exactly what I'd call a key cog for playoff success. Of course, neither was Roloson. Though the Oilers were an 8th place team with the shittiest goal-tending by far all season long. So even being is 8th had to tell you something about the skaters. Spacek was just a depth add. Recchi and Weight were for experience. Recchi, a career ppg guy, was performing at high level on a shit team, so he was going to help. Weight was there to make the safe play, so that Laviollete didn't have to rely on his team's youth in important situations. Wieght didn't really contribute, but Recchi's prescence was definitely felt. Forsberg and Vishnevski add great adds. Sure, they are sexy, but I don't think it is a total crapshoot. A gamble, for sure. But I like Nashville's odds alot more now. Barring major a disaster you can pencil in the Preds for the West finals. I'm all over the place today.
Weedy touched on a very important point there. With the new NHL schedule, Nashville and Detroit get to beat up on St. Louis, Chicago, and Columbus a total of twenty four times! You only have to go back as far as the Wings last season to put it in perspective. There is no denying that there is quite a bit of talent on that Predators team, but very little playoff character, even with Forsberg. There's PF, Kariya had one magic year with Ahaheim, and Arnott, who was integral to the Devils run in 2000, but is hardly a franchise player. Their inflated point total now might make them a sexy pick to win it all, but wait until they start playing a bunch of consecutive games against teams like Calgary, San Jose, and even Dallas. Their lack of experience will be glaring as they make, at best, a second round exit.
I mean Vitali is really hot. stupid edit timer. tahoemoj, go check Nashville's record against those teams you mention.
Unless I missed something, I'm coming up with 4-3. Not exactly a striking stat. You can point to the recent drubbing of San Jose at home, but one game, especially when it's a few games into an eight game roader for the Sharks, doesn't show me much. Garfield, you obviously have quite a bit of knowledge about hockey, so I'm sure you'll readily admit that the playoffs are a different animal. I'm not saying that the Preds are incapable of matching up with the west's elite any given day, just that they really aren't going to be able to sustain it when the schedule gets more grueling for them.
And how have they been doing against Anaheim so far?
Yeah, their record isn't that telling. Though they shutout both Anaheim and San Jose already this month. The Preds have done very well against the league's best so far this year. They aren't dominant, but they hold their own. Very readily. And I'm not 100% convinced Nashville's formula of speed and quickness will work through four rounds in the playoffs. But I plan on not discounting them.
Recchi and Weight were for experience. That sounds like Poile's reasoning: "We have only one player who has won a Stanley Cup, and that's Jason Arnott," Poile said. "This is a huge addition with Peter Forsberg the player and Peter Forsberg the Stanley Cup champion." And how have they been doing against Anaheim so far? 2 wins and 1 loss by my count. 2-1 vs Sharks 2-1 vs Vancouver 2-0 vs Calgary 1-2 vs Detroit 0-2 vs Dallas Also, they game I went to against St. Louis the Preds won in the shootout, so its not like every game against Chicago, St.Louis, and Columbus are guaranteed wins.
Now that I look into it, Nashville lost thier first 3 games against the Blackhawks this season.
So even being is 8th had to tell you something about the skaters. Actually, I think it underscores the value of Pronger. 'Cuz they have all those skaters this year... Plus Lupul and Sykora and they can't buy goals lately and are is real danger of missing the playoffs. Look, Nashville is good - but let's not go crazy yet. They don't have a lot of playoff experience, and they play in the worst division. However - they do have a very good coach, very good depth, don't take a lot of penalties and have good goaltending and goalie depth. If the formulas of Carolina and Buffalo are to be believed then this Preds squad looks a lot like them. I put them in the conversation - but I still like San Jose and Calgary more. At least, today I do. Well that and the fact that Forsberg could be out for the year tomorrow if he wakes up funny.
They do have a winning record against the current westerm playoff teams (8-6-2), and I don't see how adding Forsberg can hurt that, but experience is a huge aspect of playoff success. If Erat, Legwand, or someone else steps up in the playoffs, along with Vokoun getting hot, of course they'll be tough to beat. And if they wind up getting to the conference or even the Cup finals, I'll be the first one to wipe the egg off my face and say that I underestimated them!
Pronger is a huge part of it. My intent was to include him in consideration of the skaters. But Jussi and Conklin were shit. Lowe improved that position by 15%, to grab a random percentage out of thin air, and the Oilers were a much more formidable opponent. Pisani scoring goals every time he shot the puck didn't hurt either. Add to the list of Predator assets team consistency. They have been "staying the course" since they entered the league. I think Trotz has been there since day 1. Team cultural consistency shouldn't be ignored. Atleast if a winner is to be built, not bought.
Now that I look into it, Nashville lost thier first 3 games against the Blackhawks this season. In their defense, the Blackhawks were surprisingly decent at the start of the year... until Havlat got injured. And, well, the Preds started off a little slow.
The thing I like about Nashville is that they seem to have a solid goaltending situation. Vokoun is a monster, and Mason has proved that he can hold his own. The one knock is that neither one of the two has much playoff expirience, and I think it has been proven that it takes a good goalie to go far in the playoffs. I think this move should be good for Nashville if Forsberg stays healthy. That is a gigantic if. That is the big reason why I wasn't entirely sold on the idea of the Wings possibly trading for him.
The one knock is that neither one of the two has much playoff expirience, I really think that makes NO difference. It takes a hot goalie to take you through the playoffs, not one with a lot of experience. Cam Ward and Roloson weren't exactly experienced playoff veterans last year.
That is a good point. However, I do think that some expirience in the big games can be a whole lot of help. If I were to choose between two goalies of relatively equal skill to start in the playoffs, I'd probably go with the more expirienced one (provided it wasn't a man made of glass like Hasek).
I wonder if this is one of those, "we'll let ya go have a chance at the cup if you promise to come back" type deals. My question to the hardcore hockey folks: Any chance of Toronto doing with this Sundin? I heard rumors that is was a possibility, but nothing specific.
My question to the hardcore hockey folks: Any chance of Toronto doing with this Sundin? I heard rumors that is was a possibility, but nothing specific Sundin doesn't go anywhere. As long as the Leafs are within sniffing distance of a playoff spot, they won't trade him. If they did trade him while still within shouting distance of a playoff spot, the fans would burn the ACC to the ground...while paying $175 a seat to be in there while it burns.
Upshaw 2 Forsberg 0
Upshaw? Willie Upshaw? I'm sure you mean Upshall, but then again......
No, Gene. And his leash. Yes, Upshall. Hooked on Phonics, you know.
Did you know they're cousins? Willie and Gene I mean.
