Alright, here's how my second live NHL game went...

We nearly died 20 minutes after departure from the K-W area.  A transport truck carrying ~8 cars was about a foot away from getting clipped by a truck hauling a liquid tanker that swerved to the next lane as the truck with cars hit his brakes suddenly.  We just happened to be in the next lane to the truck with cars so there's a chance the cars would've crushed us.  It was our Final Destination experience.

So we took the 402 and got to Detoilet in about 3.5 hours because traffic was minimal, roads cleared up and the border crossing was surprisingly quick (my buddy only had a British passport with a Canadian citizenship card).  We got into our seats in time for warm ups and the anthems.

It was a great game as you all know.  To me, it almost felt like a playoff game on the ice - I loved watching 2 elite puck possession teams battle.  Wings fans are great and pretty knowledgeable (at least the ones near us).

Enough talk, picture time... stick around to the end.

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[Ed note - Obviously we love these first-hand accounts. If you're new to the site, never commented before or a regular like cyxj, we'd love to hear about your experience]

So my brother and I came across some cheap 100-Level tickets for this game a couple weeks ago and snatched them up immediately.  I'd been stoked for the weeks leading up to the game as it was going to be our first live NHL game and I get to see my team play albeit on the road.

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Hey guys,

I have to fill some spots in a couple of my annual leagues since we've had some turnover.

They are head-to-head leagues; one standard setting and one deep league (4 lines used).

Feel free to join either one or both of them.

Link to sign up: http://hockey.fantasysports.yahoo.com/hockey

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After I logged onto my computer today I was greeted with the following message from a friend since high school who is a hardcore Leafs fan (my MSN name says 'Canucks in 6 - 1-2'):

"your going to have ur name at 1-4 pretty soon bud
the canSUCKS are shit"

I knew I was going to be in for an interesting conversation.

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I want to get these thoughts out while they're still fresh in my head.

It is kind of pointless to criticize and evaluate the team since they won Gold but I'm bored and can't fall asleep yet.

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Congrats to eightyseven on winning the pool by going perfect in the playoff round (save for the final score).

I would like to run or help run a pool for the NHL playoffs when that rolls around.  Both a player drafting type like andrew21nz ran and a bracket style like this one.

(I need more words again so this is just filler material.  Quite a game today, eh?  Go Canada!  I think I have enough words now.)

Here is the leaderboard after the round robin:

Comments:

-The majority of us picked up points in the bottom half of the standings.

-No one picked USA for 1st.

-The good news for those that finished near the bottom is that Part Deux is worth much more points.

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Alright, I've decided to go with Option 1 from the original thread even though Option 2 got more votes (3-2).  The reason for this is because it'll easier to score points in the preliminary and elimination rounds separately as opposed to having to try to guess through the whole tournament from the jump.  With Option 2, it would basically become a guessing game for the semi-final/finals as it'll be difficult to predict the exact qualification/quarter-final match ups and I think many people will end up with the same predictions/scores.  I hope that makes sense.

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I was bored and was thinking of running a March Madness style pool for the Olympics.  There's a couple of ways we can do this:

1)  Everyone submits their 12 team rankings for the preliminary round by Tuesday morning (Feb 16th).  We could award 1 point for each correctly ranked team, 1st to 12th.

Then everyone submits their playoff brackets by the next Tuesday morning (Feb 23rd).  The point values can be increased with each round (qualification=2, quarters=3, semis=4, finals=5+3 for correct score).

2)  Straight up bracket style.  You would submit both parts from above before the tournament begins.  Points can be awarded in the same fashion, more points at each subsequent round.  Pretty much the same thing as above but you have to be 'more right'.

Please indicate your interest, vote on which format you prefer, and make any suggestions that could make this better.

Tournament information from www.iihf.com after the jump...

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I think that Jannik will probably just meet up with the Canucks after playing up to 3 games for the Moose this weekend in Massachusetts and Pennsylvania.

He's been out of game action since January 20th, so it's not a bad idea to get in some games.

AV must really have something against Hansen if he'd rather play Hordichuk for Glass last night against the Blues.

Source:  http://canucks.nhl.com/club/news.htm?id=515359

Eastern Conference

Atlantic

1. Philadelphia (2)
   
2. Pittsburgh (5)
   
3. New York Rangers (6)
   
4. New Jersey (8)
   
5. New York Islanders

Northeast

1. Boston (1)
   
2. Toronto (7)
   
3. Buffalo
4. Ottawa
5. Montreal

Southeast

1. Carolina (3)
   
2. Washington (4)
   
3. Tampa Bay
4. Atlanta
5. Florida

Western Conference

Central

1. Detroit (2)
   
2. Chicago (4)
   
3. St. Louis (7)
   
4. Columbus
5. Nashville

Northwest

1. Vancouver (3)
   
2. Calgary (6)
   
3. Edmonton
4. Minnesota
5. Colorado

Pacific

1. San Jose (1)
   
2. Anaheim (5)
   
3. Dallas (8)
   
4. Los Angeles
5. Phoenix

Thoughts, comments, etc.?  Throw up yours if you want to.

Bruins in 5

Capitals in 6

Hurricanes in 6

Penguins in 7

Sharks in 6

Red Wings in 6

Canucks in 5

Blackhawks in 5

Post yours!!

Need more words Need more words Need more words Need more words Need more words Need more words Need more words Need more words Need more words Need more words Need more words Need more words Need more words Need more words Need more words Need more words Need more words Need more words Need more words Need more words Need more words Need more

I usually do this annually for another message board:

Bernier - I expected him to play with the twin and get at least 20 goals, but he just can't seem to finish often enough and doesn't really have good puck sense. His role on the third line suits him better IMO, he does lead the team in hits and puts forth a lot of effort. He'll probably get extended for another year or two for around $1.2mil per. C+

Bieksa - Led defencemen in points, as expected. Aside from a few defensive lapses and taking some bad penalties, I don't have any complaints about what he does. B+

Burrows - What can you say? He has surpassed everyone's expectations and has become a team leader. I don't think anybody has scored more big goals than him. Gotta love this guy. A+

Davison - Was okay in his role as a reserve defenceman. C-

Demitra - Disappeared at times during the first half but very consistent post-All Star break, fits well as the playmaker on the RPM line. He basically replaced Naslund's points at a cheaper cost. B

Edler - Established new career numbers. Solid, quiet puck mover. You only notice him when he makes a mistake. And he's only 22. B

Hansen - Had great chemistry as part of the third line with Kes/Burr at the start. Injury has kind of "ruined" his first full season (30 pts pace is respectable). C+

Hordichuk - Finally a legitimate heavyweight who isn't a liable on the ice and a great teammate. C+

Johnson - Did what he does best effectively (energy role, block shots, PK), day in day out. B-

Kesler - Built on his breakout season last year, establish new career bests. Plays every situation efficiently. A+

LaBarbera - Solid backup. B-

Luongo - Scary numbers (9 shutouts) despite playing only 54 games. Aside from that stretch where he was giving up bad goals every game, no complaints. A

Mitchell - Career year, and a +29... damn. Has been very solid all year long. A

O'Brien - Pretty solid as the 6th D-man. Too many bad penalties though. C+

Ohlund - Just an all-out warrior. Didn't get his usual 30 points as he wasn't relied on as much. Gonna miss him next year. B

Pyatt - Has been regulated to 3rd line duties and performed well. Also an effective PKer now too. C+

Raymond - Started off nice but just ran into a wall. Has done okay in PK roles. Doesn't play edgy enough as he's pretty slight. C-

Rypien - Loves this guy's hustle and heart, it's such a shame that he can't stay healthy. INCOMPLETE

Salo - Probably the best puck mover on the team. The team is 36-17-7 with him in the lineup, and 9-10-3 without him. B+

Sedin (D) - Another solid season for Daniel. Not much else to say. A

Sedin (H) - Has shown that he can score some slick goals along with being an elite passer. A+

Sundin - Extrapolate his numbers out to a full season and he put up 58 points, well below expectations. It doesn't look like he can keep up with the speed of the western conference. But his size and skill helps draw other teams' attention to create space for his linemates. C

Vaananen - Hasn't played enough to judge, but appears to be a solid 7th D-man and teammate. INCOMPLETE

Wellwood - Started off on fire with some nice goals, but then hit a wall. Regulated to the 3rd line and has surprisingly done well. 18 goals for less than $1mil is a steal IMO. B


Overall, I'm sure the team has surpassed everyone's expectations. I know that lots of analysts had them not even sniffing the playoffs. FWIW, I had them sneaking in.