Best defenseman is questionable, and that was their only real significant injury. Most teams deal with more than what the Islanders lost, and most teams don't plummet as much as the Islanders did when they lose it.
Around the NHL - Congrats to the Tampa Bay Lightning!
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Giuseppe Sallo
ELE-VAT-ED
I don't think people understand Stars/Lightning have been building for at last the past 5 seasons, it's their time.
isles are not there yet but Vegas was my pick to win tho.
The bubble sucks... Can't lie, i haven't watched hockey, not interested but finals looks interesting.
isles are not there yet but Vegas was my pick to win tho.
The bubble sucks... Can't lie, i haven't watched hockey, not interested but finals looks interesting.
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- Dec 12, 2017
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BertCorbeau
F*ck cancer - RIP Fugu and Buffaloed
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kb
Registered User
- Aug 28, 2009
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Weird how great goaltending can win a series.....
I read Andersen was good enough, but our D sucked.
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Menzinger
Kessel4LadyByng
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stickty111
Registered User
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Don't think many people had Dallas going to the final but they really were the dark horse in the West. Congrats to them.
CantLoseWithMatthews
Registered User
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Leafs at Knight
¯\_(ツ)_/¯
Jimmy Firecracker
Backcheck, Forecheck, Paycheque.
Menzinger
Kessel4LadyByng
Unexpected but great win for the Stars.
That said, Tampa probably wins that series in like 5 games.
That said, Tampa probably wins that series in like 5 games.
Leafs should learn from Dallas and Tampa. They're well rounded and deep.
Dallas has a very attractive bottom six. Same with Tampa. Both the teams have superstars up front on D.
Leafs are not close.
Dallas has a very attractive bottom six. Same with Tampa. Both the teams have superstars up front on D.
Leafs are not close.
Superstar
"Be water, my friend."
- Jun 25, 2008
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The VGK is a very good team, but they lack some high end game-breaking talent.
The Leafs have 3 or 4, maybe a trade in the making. Willie or Marner for Stone...
Dallas is a byproduct of getting secondary scoring when they needed it, a little bit of luck and ridiculously hot goaltending for a stretch at the right time. They got outplayed heavily in their series against Vegas and won in 5 games.
We got none of those things when we played Columbus. We outplayed Columbus but again hot goaltending for two weeks got them past us and held Tampa off for a few games. We had zero secondary scoring with a third line that would usually average a point per game and an above average 4th line in the regular season.
Dallas/Tampa/Vegas/NYI are also 4 of the oldest teams in the league while we're one of the 4 youngest along with Carolina, NYR, and Columbus. Our young players will get better and we're a lot closer than most would think at the moment. The defense needs work but there are good pieces in place with Rielly/Muzzin/Dermott/Sandin/Liljegren. All is not lost.
SeaOfBlue
The Passion That Unites Us All
- Aug 1, 2013
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Let's not pretend that Khudobin was not the real reason they made it to the Cup Finals. Easily their MVP, and that is with Heiskanen putting up a PPG+ too.
They are not exactly a structure that teams should copy. They received excellent goaltending and had guys step up when they needed them to step up. Not exactly something the current Leafs team is incapable of doing themselves. Their defense is built pretty well, but that did not stop them from bleeding chances and generally getting outplayed. Khudobin just kept them in their games so they could squeak out wins.
Dallas finished with 1 more point in 1 less game than the Leafs in the regular season, despite having about as smooth of a regular season as you could hope for in terms of injuries and not having a tough conference.
I wanted Dallas in the Cup Finals out of the West, so I am happy with the result though. Helps the Leafs pick a little bit higher since we have two Vegas picks and Dallas is a team that always seemed like they could have been better than their results. Now we just need Tampa to beat the Islanders and we have a nice Cup Final.
Also, for those concerned about the Leafs not being able to get anywhere anytime soon, since 2007-2008 when Dallas lost in the Conference Finals, they have only made the playoffs three times (this year is the fourth). The best they were able to do was lose in the semis twice, and outside of one 109 point season, the most regular season points they were able to manage was 95 (which ironically was not enough to make the playoffs that year; they were able to make the playoffs with 93 and 91 points...). So it is possible to go places quite fast in this league.
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7even
Offered and lost
Dallas is 10-1 in one goal games. The best you can really do is put yourself in the conversation and hope lightning strikes your ass twice. It's not strictly fair but it is strictly entertaining 
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No. One, they don’t need Nylander, and two, they need to keep Stone.
I never liked the Pacioretty acquisition, although he scored some goals, I just don’t see him as a playoff warrior.Last night he was around but the D man were able tie him up. Maybe they look at moving him.
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