NHL '08- '09 Thread

[MedicCook]

Originally Posted by Queen James

Hey now, any hockey fight is entertaining when punches are thrown. I mean come on give 'em some credit, afterall, if they wanted to just throw punches they would be boxers not hockey players

It is also better when both guys are fighters.

Originally Posted by MedicCook

It is also better when both guys are fighters.

Alright I suppose I'll give you that
But I'm not going to lie...it's pretty awesome when the gloves come off and someone yells fight

[MedicCook]

Originally Posted by Queen James

Alright I suppose I'll give you that
But I'm not going to lie...it's pretty awesome when the gloves come off and someone yells fight

I loved watching fights during Adirondack Red Wings/Icehawks/Frostbite games in Glens Falls.

Better, Series tied 2-2. Can't wait to go to game 5! Being there live is awesome! I'll be going nuts! Go Wings!

[icehog3]

Originally Posted by icehog3

very cool pics

[Ahbroody]

Well it appears the sky is no longer falling in detroit.
Looks like there are a couple of three game series. Going to be super intense.

Hopefully the Bs can save my Humi from getting destroyed having to pay out sticks for bets. Damn Bs

[bugmenot]

Wings finally looked like they were bringing it. Hopefully they can keep that up, and win two more in a row.

Once again missed the Hawks game except for the last TWO minutes, so I missed the tying goal, How did the Canucks only get 15 shots? Did they play that way, or did the Hawks just stop them from shooting?

[Sawyer]

Originally Posted by bugmenot

Wings finally looked like they were bringing it. Hopefully they can keep that up, and win two more in a row.

Once again missed the Hawks game except for the last TWO minutes, so I missed the tying goal, How did the Canucks only get 15 shots? Did they play that way, or did the Hawks just stop them from shooting?

They played a heavily defensive game. They were trying to completely lock down the Hawks and it almost worked out for them.

[icehog3]

Joe, saw this column today in the Chicago paper and thought you might like to see it.

Hawks will look back on crucial play as defining moment

The Blackhawks' season was only minutes from being over, for all intents and purposes.

They were on the verge of going down 3-1 in the series, needing a three-game winning streak with two games left on the road.

Goaltender Roberto Luongo was shutting them out and they were frustrated by a stifling Vancouver defense, which had rarely made a mistake.

And then Canucks defensemen Willie Mitchell tried a clearing attempt up the boards when there was space up the middle.

That was a mistake.

That's also when Andrew Ladd saved the game, the series, and maybe the season.

He could have been freelancing at that point, with less than three minutes remaining and the Hawks down a goal, but Ladd was exactly where he was supposed to be.

That's what coach Joel Quenneville preaches, to stick with the plan, play the system, and trust your teammates to do the same, but if players go off on their own, try to make fancy plays or be the hero, it doesn't work.

So Andrew Ladd was in his lane, clogging up the boards and doing his job.

He threw his body against the glass and stopped the puck, and with three Canucks surrounding him, he tucked a nifty, no-look pass between skates and handed it to a wide-open Martin Havlat, who walked toward the net and calmly beat Luongo high on the glove side for a 1-1 tie.

"Ladd made a great play there along the boards,'' Quenneville said. "There's always a defining moment in a series, in a game, in the playoffs, and in a season.''

Right now, as we sit here with a series knotted and two teams playing as close as two can, Ladd's steal along the boards is the play of the year.

It's the defining moment.
"Oh, no. That's us just sticking with the system,'' Ladd said, deflecting credit. "I think everybody in the room did. It just worked out for Marty and me right there, but everybody did it.''

After 57 minutes, the Hawks once again had proof that if they stuck to Quenneville's plan, stayed the course and believed in what he told them, they would prevail.

And they did in overtime, with Ladd scoring and the Hawks winning 2-1 and tying the series at 2-2 at the UC Thursday night.

They are right back in the series, only because they were still doing their jobs when it might have seemed hopeless.

"Even when it looked grim, the enthusiasm was there and the concentration was still there,'' Quenneville said. "That commitment to the system is amazing, rather than being a little on their own program.''

It was the kind of hockey Quenneville has been waiting to see from his young team the entire playoffs, and they executed nearly to perfection in Game 4.

They provided solid puck support, they cut down on turnovers and got the puck deep all night, but what they couldn't do was beat Luongo until they got a break, one that looked eerily similar to a play late in Game 1 of the Calgary series.

In that contest, Havlat also strolled out of the corner with the puck after it hit a couple skates and scored the tying goal when it looked like the Hawks were cooked.

That play changed the entire Calgary series and the course of the playoffs for the Hawks, and perhaps the Ladd play along the boards has as well.

Instead of being down 3-1, the series is tied and the Hawks have regained the momentum after nearly two full games of defensive dominance by Vancouver.

"We believe in each other and we believe in the opportunity,'' Quenneville said. "Sticking with the program and diligent, I guess we're accustomed to being in this situation, playing from behind.

"It's not the right way and it's not healthy, and I'd like to find out what we're like playing with a lead.''

After allowing goals by the bucketful in the first three games of this series, it was up to the Hawks to prove they could play genuine playoff hockey against a genuine playoff opponent, and for the first time in two series they did precisely that.

Sure, they had to come from behind again, but they seem completely comfortable doing that, meaning no game or series feels out of reach.

That confidence, along with the ability to win a 2-1 game in true defensive playoff posture - a new feature the Hawks hadn't displayed until Thursday - can take a team a very long way.

"We have a great coach and we really believe what he tells us,'' Ladd said. "It's kind of easy to do your thing and not give up when you know he has the answer.

"Hopefully, we've got the confidence and momentum now. I do know that we're back in it.''

Thanks in no small part to Andrew Ladd.

[SmokeyJoe]

Originally Posted by icehog3

Joe, saw this column today in the Chicago paper and thought you might like to see it.

Thanks, Tom... I am thrilled to see Ladd doing so well. Hope he can pull the Hawks on into the next round.

[SmokeyJoe]

Originally Posted by taltos

Congrats Joe, your team is playing better and with more desire than the Bruins now. Another wasted season in Boston. Hope that you guys go to the finals.

Originally Posted by ahc4353

Congrats Joe! The boys are on a mission.

Congrats Kev! Clutch win.

Thanks, guys... been home about a half hour... WHAT A GAME!

"Canes do look like they are on a mission. We were given little chance by the national media. Barry Melrose was the only national guy that I saw that gave us the edge in the series.

Hope folks will begin to realize that the Carolina Hurricanes are a serious team... 2006 Stanley Cup Champions with some great players and a fan base that has won us the reputation among the players as the loudest house in the NHL. Time for some respect.

Bruins surprised me tonight. Losing their third game in a row? I expected them to show some more grit. Lost by multiple goals at home... lost the next game when I really expected them to come out strong... then lost tonight to a team that had a lot more jump. Outside of the second period, the 'Canes were the better team by far.

I know the series is not over, but if Boston doesn't find some heart, the Hurricanes will enjoy some rest before the next series.

[loki]

I'm sorry playing back to back games in the playoffs to appease some shitty station that televises the games is horse ****. game 5 is going to suck, period. I don't care who you are two playoff games in 2 days is just too much.

[icehog3]

Originally Posted by loki

I'm sorry playing back to back games in the playoffs to appease some shitty station that televises the games is horse ****. game 5 is going to suck, period. I don't care who you are two playoff games in 2 days is just too much.

It does suck, but at least it is only an hour plane ride. The Western Conference has it so much worse with travel, there could never be back to back games in two different cities. And BOTH Pittsburgh and Washington are playing under the same conditions, so we will get to see who steps it up.

[Bruins Fan]

The Bruins have to show some commitment tonight, they have played some sloppy hockey the last two games.

[loki]

nice knee on knee hit by ovi there...great play there way to be the best player...

Congrats Joe! The boys are on a mission.

Congrats Kev! Clutch win.

[Bruins Fan]

Stick a fork in my Bruins there done

[kugie]

The B's are bumming me out.
The canes are playing with passion and they are killing us.
Still the series is not over

[Bruins Fan]

Steve Montador is killing us he can't do jack