After a few months away from the board and anything hockey, I think I'm in a better headspace to return and comment and that allure of talking hockey just keeps pulling me back. Hope everyone has had a great summer so far (still a bit of summer left, maybe more for some depending on where you live).
The Laine trade to Montreal caught my interest, especially the Habs HF board. Wow are they optimistic about him, with the majority of posters predicting 40 goals and a few predicting 50. One poster even dubbed Patrik (and Slafkovsky) as "a god". It's possible Laine regains his old form, the HF Habs fans sure seem to think they have the right locker room for whatever ails Laine mentally. I guess we'll see whether both Winnipeg and Columbus' locker rooms were toxic and Laine just a victim of circumstance, or if maybe the guy who's peaced out on two consecutive teams is maybe part of the problem.
Seems to me that things could get ugly for Patrik if he doesn't live up to expectations. Although they are super high on him now, Habs fans do not seem to have a lot of patience for lack of performance and that market can be a real pressure-cooker, but maybe not as bad if you're not French Canadien? Time will tell.
I don't think my expectations for the Jets have ever been lower after the past two post-seasons and a very quiet off-season but maybe that's for the best ... just going to try to take things easy and enjoy the sport without getting too caught up in emotion. I'm expecting another folding like a cheap tent in round one IF they make the playoffs, and anything better than that is gravy.