2019-2020 NHL thread

[guinness77]

Ok. Total Coincidence the Isles got good overnight after losing their unquestioned best player. Total coincidence that he’s won everywhere he’s been and Toronto was complete garbage before his time there.

You don’t read most of the excrement I write so what’s the point? Ignore the fact the Islanders were the league laughingstock for 25 years. You constantly cry because your team has sucked for 2 seasons. Boo-Hoo. And now, just coincidentally, they swept the Pens last year, and they’re on pace for 100 points again this year.

[Johnny English]

Ok. Total Coincidence the Isles got good overnight after losing their unquestioned best player. Total coincidence that he’s won everywhere he’s been and Toronto was complete garbage before his time there.

You don’t read most of the excrement I write so what’s the point? Ignore the fact the Islanders were the league laughingstock for 25 years. You constantly cry because your team has sucked for 2 seasons. Boo-Hoo. And now, just coincidentally, they swept the Pens last year, and they’re on pace for 100 points again this year.

So what you're saying is that you've forgotten what winning hockey looks like, and how it's built. Gotcha. Because no one really gives a freak how many regular season points you score or even if you win the President's Trophy if you excrement the bed in the playoffs. In the last 7 years, teams run by Lamoriello have made the postseason 3 times and won one series (last year, vs Pittsburgh).

What the Islanders have done in the last 25 years is absolutely irrelevant to what Lou Lamoriello has done in the last ten. He is a busted flush who doesn't know how to build a roster in the salary cap era and he demonstrated that in Toronto. They're going to be paying for his mistakes for years to come.

[guinness77]

I just want to see you argue this.

He became the AD at Providence. The Friars sporting department, all sports, became a destination for many collegiate athletes. The basketball team (he hired Pitino) became a perennial winner.

Gets a job in NJ. Wayne Gretzky called the Devils a “Mickey Mouse organization,” they win 3 Cups.

Took a job with the last place Maple Leafs. Somehow they go from 60 something points to almost 100. His last season there they had 105. They dropped point after adding Tavares and they’re on pace to have even less this year. The players Dubas has singed or extended, looking kinda questionable but obviously the narrative on that is far from finished.

Takes a job with the laughingstock NY Islanders. A team I’ve happened to root for my entire life. In a sport, I’ve followed my entire life. They went from the class of the sport, THE model organization to an organization that changed owners like you change pants, that had one owner sent to jail, another owner imprisoned after that one and an owner, even though he probably saved the team from relocating, suggested putting a sumo wrestler in net and brought a “Hockey For Dummies” book to his presser. A team that went from the biggest joke of a GM, trading future Hall-of-famers left and right to a backup goalie with zero experience at that job. Any job.

He goes and hires the best available coach, analyzes the organization the way he sees fit and gets spurned by the team’s best player, again embarrassing an organization that has been embarrassed many, many times.

Did he overpay for Pageau? Of course. Again, don’t care about that and you can spew all this excrement about how Lou is old (he’s almost freaking 80, of course he’s old) but this organization went from laughingstock to a team some players actually want to come to now. A team that expects to win every night. I brought up Melnyk and your Sens to make a point you’ve abundantly ignored...I watched a loser franchise for 25 fuckin years and all of a sudden (coincidence I guess) I expect them to win, almost every night. Crazy, somehow the GM must have something to do with it.

[guinness77]

You are stating your opinion as I am.

Your opinion. You do understand that right? I know you’re pigheaded as freak but you do understand that’s your opinion, I hope.

You keep blaming Lou for Toronto. Lol. Yep, he fucked em bad. All him.

[Johnny English]

You are stating your opinion as I am.

Your opinion. You do understand that right? I know you’re pigheaded as freak but you do understand that’s your opinion, I hope.

You keep blaming Lou for Toronto. Lol. Yep, he fucked em bad. All him.

It's funny that you keep accusing me of not reading your posts when you're the one doing the ignoring.

What he did prior to the 04-05 lockout is irrelevant. There was, as I have already observed, a pretty significant change at that point, one which teams and GMs had to adjust to. Which forced teams to build and manage their rosters differently. You might recall it.

I've also been pretty clear that Shanahan is almost certainly part of the problem in Toronto, but let's be clear - Lamoriello was Shanahan's guy. You think he lets him walk and replaces him with Dubas if he thinks Lou's doing a good job?

Who has Lamoriello acquired that has turned the Islanders into this monster franchise that just like his Leafs teams can score 100 points in the regular season and then go nowhere in the playoffs? Were Brassard and Komarov the magic keys you were missing?

[guinness77]

Somehow the Isles will keep their core, shed contracts like Boychuk, Leddy, Clutterbuck, etc and have the money to sign Barzal to a max contract, re-sign Pulock and Toews and have guys he drafted (Dobson, Wahlstrom, Wilde and Bellows) be big parts of this team very soon.

But....keep up your narrative of how out of touch he is because he gave up draft picks for a guy who easily would have cost $5 million a/s as an UFA who would have never come here and fills a huge need for this team.

I’m just gonna add...I know you don’t live around here so I’m not sure how familiar you are with the Islanders standings with free agents....they have none. They lost their own homegrown player in Tavares for less money to leave and Panarin (who Lou was huge on) also for less money to play in Manhattan. Those are things that he’s attempting to change because that’s been going on for years...convincing guys to stay. I could go through the Ryan Smyth trade, all the free agents who flirt and then never sign. Today he got Pageau to sign for 5 years and got Zach Parise to waive his no-trade clause even though that trade wasn’t completed. That is progress, in my eyes.

[Italian Seafood]

When Lou was in NJ prior to the salary cap the Devils had a self imposed cap because they couldn't and wouldn't pay top dollar. So implementing a cap actually caused every other team to deal with the same restrictions Lou had all along, and the Devils continued to win until Brodeur was no longer a dominant goalie.

Speaking of which, MJ what do you think of all the trades? Looks like we loaded up on picks and are building around the young guys. Seems like they're winning more but every time I look at the standings they don't appear any closer to anyone than when they were losing every game. Hardly matters now, I guess.

[guinness77]

Absolutely stunned you got anything for Simmonds. And, to Buffalo?? What are they thinking?

[mj2sexay]

When Lou was in NJ prior to the salary cap the Devils had a self imposed cap because they couldn't and wouldn't pay top dollar. So implementing a cap actually caused every other team to deal with the same restrictions Lou had all along, and the Devils continued to win until Brodeur was no longer a dominant goalie.

Speaking of which, MJ what do you think of all the trades? Looks like we loaded up on picks and are building around the young guys. Seems like they're winning more but every time I look at the standings they don't appear any closer to anyone than when they were losing every game. Hardly matters now, I guess.

I'm saddened at the lack of return on Vats, but considering he's strictly a rental and he was hurt when they traded him, I guess Fitz took what he could get. I'd still really like to bring him back via free agency in the off-season, this team will need to spend to hit the floor even with Nico getting 7 million starting next year and with Cory and Zajac on the books. Right-handed puck moving defenseman don't grow on trees.

Had to do the Coleman deal. The price was just too rich and our window for winning with him under 30 and at such an affordable rate is non-existent. They did the smart thing on listening on Palms but not moving him unless they got a similar offer they couldn't refuse. You need SOME veteran stability and assistance on the wing for the two young centers.

I can't believe they got anything for Simmons, I can't believe they actually got a 2nd rounder for Greene even if its in 2021 (and good for Greeney considering he's looking like he's fit in on the island seamlessly. I still think he's a fantastic option as a lower pairing defenseman given his ability to get in front of shots.)

Honestly, my biggest gripe is that I think Shero jumped the gun on Hall. Granted, Bahl looked very good at the world juniors-but given the lack of true top end talent available once Kreider was off the board, even on a clear rental, I think they could have done better had they held onto him and then flipped him on Monday.  Colorado is desperate for help on the wing given all the injuries they've had and they have a glut of young talent on the blue line.

Fitz has done well enough so far (and so has Nasraddine to my great surprise) that I wouldn't be upset if they both came back next year and were given an opportunity to run the show. I love Marty. I love Scott Stevens. Asking for either of them to take meaningful roles as GM or head coach at this stage given this roster is just asking for this organization to eventually fire guys that are the apex in terms of franchise legends, all for the sake of nostalgia. No thanks.

[Johnny English]

Absolutely stunned you got anything for Simmonds. And, to Buffalo?? What are they thinking?

Simmonds will always have value as a rental, he's one of those wily vets who coaches love at this time of year because grit and intangibles and all sorts of other unquantifiable nonsense that they trot out. It's a long shot but with 20 games to go the Sabres still have an outside chance at a wildcard and the fans are really pissed at the Pegulas right now, so I can see why they might do this just so they can't be accused of quitting on the team.

[Italian Seafood]

I'm saddened at the lack of return on Vats, but considering he's strictly a rental and he was hurt when they traded him, I guess Fitz took what he could get. I'd still really like to bring him back via free agency in the off-season, this team will need to spend to hit the floor even with Nico getting 7 million starting next year and with Cory and Zajac on the books. Right-handed puck moving defenseman don't grow on trees.

Had to do the Coleman deal. The price was just too rich and our window for winning with him under 30 and at such an affordable rate is non-existent. They did the smart thing on listening on Palms but not moving him unless they got a similar offer they couldn't refuse. You need SOME veteran stability and assistance on the wing for the two young centers.

I can't believe they got anything for Simmons, I can't believe they actually got a 2nd rounder for Greene even if its in 2021 (and good for Greeney considering he's looking like he's fit in on the island seamlessly. I still think he's a fantastic option as a lower pairing defenseman given his ability to get in front of shots.)

Honestly, my biggest gripe is that I think Shero jumped the gun on Hall. Granted, Bahl looked very good at the world juniors-but given the lack of true top end talent available once Kreider was off the board, even on a clear rental, I think they could have done better had they held onto him and then flipped him on Monday.  Colorado is desperate for help on the wing given all the injuries they've had and they have a glut of young talent on the blue line.

Fitz has done well enough so far (and so has Nasraddine to my great surprise) that I wouldn't be upset if they both came back next year and were given an opportunity to run the show. I love Marty. I love Scott Stevens. Asking for either of them to take meaningful roles as GM or head coach at this stage given this roster is just asking for this organization to eventually fire guys that are the apex in terms of franchise legends, all for the sake of nostalgia. No thanks.

Thanks. Always exciting to go young, Blackwood looks awesome, nice to see Schneider come back and get a win but I think he's on the way out. Maybe we can luck into another #1 overall again, we seem to be the anti-Knicks.

[Johnny English]

Sens fired their CEO who was less than two months into the job via a crisis management organisation making a statement about behaviour inconsistent with the values of the team and the NHL. Cue rampant speculation all day until Little, the fired CEO, released this statement:

The statement made today by the team contained some language that deserves some clarification.

On Valentine’s Day, the owner and I had a personal disagreement over the approach that I had been pursuing. I am a strong-willed person and the disagreement included me using some very strong language with him over the phone, including swearing, which he did not appreciate and for which I later apologized.

It was these events, to my knowledge, which led to my dismissal. Any other inference from the statement is wrong.

So basically it was because that freaking shitbag of an owner got upset that someone dared to stand up to him and tell him that he doesn't know how to run a professional hockey team, something which has been blatantly apparent for a long time to literally everyone except Eugene Melnyk.

I have no idea why the NHL BoG continue to allow this travesty to continue. He won't sell, he won't support the team, one of the previously best attended teams in the league is now getting gates of less than half capacity, he's bleeding what few corporate sponsors he had, and he's having to find increasingly creative ways to take on contracts that will allow the club to hit the cap floor without actually having to pay out the money. He can't move the team, he has blown the downtown stadium deal, and he won't sell it to one of the consortia waiting in the wings to buy it from him. The inaction on their part is almost as disgraceful as his behaviour.

James Dolan talk can freak off, I'd let him play a half hour gig with his band at centre ice before every game and I'd actually go watch the freaking thing every time if it meant him Melnyk gone. This is the worst owner in professional sports.

[Johnny English]

It's not really NHL-related but I don't know where else to put it and it's the greatest thing that has happened this week:

https://twitter.com/c_marleau/status/1239747420386291713

[SixFeetDeep]

https://twitter.com/zedmat/status/1252764605564309504?s=21

[MBGreen]

Rumor going around that Pierre Maguire was interviewed for the Devils' GM position lulz