[Athens]

Like the title says, welcome to the unoffical Hockey Lounge Thread. This thread is for all stuff Hockey.

So whos looking forward to the start up of the NHL

I sure am, and Vancouver has managed to keep most of its core players. Any bets on whos going to take the cup this year?

[villalobos]

Originally Posted by Athens

Like the title says, welcome to the unoffical Hockey Lounge Thread. This thread is for all stuff Hockey.

So whos looking forward to the start up of the NHL

I sure am, and Vancouver has managed to keep most of its core players. Any bets on whos going to take the cup this year?

With all the moves one would be hard pressed to know what on earth is going on in the NHL these days.... Obviously the Flyers are scary with all the recruiting, but if everything goes right they will choke... :-) My Wings don't impress me too much. They let Dandenault go but kept Chelios.....

[rickey939]

I love grown men skating around on ice and hitting each other...that's all.

[Agasthya]

Go Sens

[brapper]

this season is going to be crazy. There's no point predicting anything right now, because anything could happen. I mean the Pens are suddenly looking like contenders!

[Randman]

Who won last year's Stanley Cup?

Who would like to be a goalie this season?

Isn't the NHL airing on Public Access TV?

Love hockey, but the stupid strike still leaves a sour taste in my mouth.

[JustAnOl'Broad]

Originally Posted by rickey939

and hitting each other...that's all.

^ fixinated.

I love grown men skating around on ice and scoring.
Not into the horrific fights, but the skills of the game
are hawt!
Don't have a favorite team, but love the sport.

[Rev-O]

Avs lose Peter the Spleen to Phillie. Lose Adam Foote to Columbus (Columbus!?). Not sure what the season will bring. Forseberg is one of the best period, but he never plays a majority of a season. Adam Foote is a great defensemen, but if the NHL actually enforces Obstruction calls, his style of play may be on the way out.

With the changes favoring offense, I guess I'm optimistic about the Avs chances, and am looking forward the upcoming season. It is a shame that the Avs and the Nucks have had a year to cool off after the Bertuzzi episode. Them woulda been some interesting games last season!

[davesimondotcom]

So they are for sure making goalie pads smaller, right? And the red line is gone?

What about making center ice trap defenses illegal and making the rinks Olympic sized? That would get scoring going!

[ironknee]

go flyers!

[Albert Pujols]

Bruins.


Suck. WTF Bruins... WTF

[Rev-O]

Originally Posted by davesimondotcom

So they are for sure making goalie pads smaller, right? And the red line is gone?

What about making center ice trap defenses illegal and making the rinks Olympic sized? That would get scoring going!

Larger ice will never happen in the NHL, would require seats to be removed from arenas and result in lost revenue. Center trap defense will also be much harder to implement with the center line gone for passing. Running a trapping defense vs. the (swedish or finn style, can't remember which) jet offense is risky at best. Now if they stick to their guns and actually enforce obstruction, the game will be faster and way more entertaining than previous seasons!

[olePigeon]

I think Hockey is perfect in terms of scoring.

It's not as slow paced as football (soccer) with maybe 1 or 2 goals. And it's not as gay as basketball. Honestly, how do people cheer for 100+ field goals? Gets old.

Hockey is great, it's right in the middle. Just enough goals to keep you on your feet.

[budster101]

Go Blackhawks! ... meh.

[hickey]

GO FLYERS!
The flyers got Forsberg this season but lost leclair and roenick and others. Oh well, we still got enough talent to take the cup. Chomp on that.

[brapper]

no you dont.

[Athens]

Originally Posted by davesimondotcom

So they are for sure making goalie pads smaller, right? And the red line is gone?

What about making center ice trap defenses illegal and making the rinks Olympic sized? That would get scoring going!

I say let them hit the goalie out of the cress, I would love to see Dan from Vancouver take out players. Hes a tough one.

[Athens]

Go Vancouver!

[ironknee]

Originally Posted by hickey

GO FLYERS!
The flyers got Forsberg this season but lost leclair and roenick and others. Oh well, we still got enough talent to take the cup. Chomp on that.

forsberg! cool. go flyers

[Rev-O]

Originally Posted by ironknee

forsberg! cool. go flyers

I'll miss Peter the Spleen in Avs-Land. Most talented player in hockey. Most injured player in hockey. He is an amazing talent, to be sure!

[davesimondotcom]

Oh, and go Avs!

[Warung]

My last favorite team in the NHL was the Avs...but now, - meh. I lived in Colorado when they moved there, and I even went to one of their home games...

I used to love the NY Islanders in the early 80s and also was a Rangers fan for a while. But I'm really moving in the direction of Philly now. Pretty awesome franchise.

Having said that, go Eagles!

I'm sooo looking forward to watching a game or two in the new arena.

[Athens]

Originally Posted by Warung

My last favorite team in the NHL was the Avs...but now, - meh. I lived in Colorado when they moved there, and I even went to one of their home games...

I used to love the NY Islanders in the early 80s and also was a Rangers fan for a while. But I'm really moving in the direction of Philly now. Pretty awesome franchise.

Having said that, go Eagles!

I'm sooo looking forward to watching a game or two in the new arena.

Im expecting more blood when Vancouver and Colorado play this year, spec since Bert is back on the ice.

[TailsToo]

Go Flyers!

[KeriVit]

I'm done with hockey after last year. At least the Bruins were undefeated...

[ort888]

Huge Blues fan here. Not to excited about what my team has done in the offseason, but am very excited for the season. Even though I think my favorite team might be terrible.

[budster101]

I can't seem to be able to stomach "professional" hockey. I love watching Olympic Hockey though.

[jcain]

I don't get OLN, so I guess I won't be able to watch much hockey this season. The NHL has flushed what little popularity they had down the toilet with the lockout, and I'm not sure the league will be able to recover.

[davesimondotcom]

Originally Posted by Warung

I used to love the NY Islanders in the early 80s and also was a Rangers fan for a while.

You can't like the Isles and the Rangers. That's not legal.

Early 80s Isles were awesome. Billy Smith in goal. Only team more fun to watch was the dynasty that came after them. You know, that team with Gretzky, Kurri, Messier, Fuhr, etc.

Best. Team. Ever.

[ironknee]

i still hate the islanders. rangers...well god knows what team is left.

flyers, 30 years ago, won da cup! oops i ment teh cup!

[Warung]

Originally Posted by davesimondotcom

You can't like the Isles and the Rangers. That's not legal.

Early 80s Isles were awesome. Billy Smith in goal...

Brian Trottier, Mike Bossy...hell yeah!

Never really cared too much for that other fairly good team from Canada at the time.

I only became interested in the Rangers a lot later, the early 90s, when had this obsession with all things NY at the time.

I actually don't care about the Isles at all anymore, the Rangers are "OK"...'will be interesting to see what team comes out on top this year.

I hope one of these days NHL teams will also play a few games here in Germany. I'd love to see the Bruins, Leafs or Flyers go up against Mannheim or Cologne. That'd be fun to watch, eventhough it'd probably be a slaughter fest...

[Daracle]

Calgary will take it....they are looking better then they did last year.
My other team is the Leafs, but I don't expect very much of them this year.

[Agasthya]

Originally Posted by ort888

Huge Blues fan here. Not to excited about what my team has done in the offseason, but am very excited for the season. Even though I think my favorite team might be terrible.

A couple of my friends are getting season tickets and wanted me to join in but it seems like wasted money at this point. It's going to be a miracle if the Blues win 25 games.

[iDriveX]

The Kings 2005-2006

Luc Robaitaille
Alexander Frolov
Pavol Demitra
Jeremy Roenick

OK our defense and goalie situation could use some work, but atleast we'll be scoring goals this year and that's half the battle!

[Agasthya]

Sens got Heater

[BasketofPuppies]

Again, wake me up when Bill Wirtz allows local games to be televised

...or at least puts together a decent team.

[budster101]

[Athens]

Im surprised at how many hockey fans are here. Anyways Hockey Night in Canada is going to suck if the CBC strike stays the way it is. Guess im just going to have to go to the games in person. Oh well LOL

[Agasthya]

[iDriveX]

Just in case you didn't know...

New Rules for 2005

Dimensions of Rink

• The neutral-zone edges of the blue lines will be positioned 64 feet from the attacking goal line and 75 feet from the end boards in the attacking zone. The addition of four feet in each of the offensive zones should encourage more offensive play, particularly on power-plays.
• The goal lines will be positioned 11 feet from the end boards, two feet closer to the end boards than previously.
• The size of the neutral zone will be reduced to 50' from 54'.
• The blue lines and center line will remain at 12 inches in width.

Fewer Stoppage, Increased Flow

• Passes from behind the defensive blue line to the attacking blue line will be considered legal. The center red line will be ignored for purposes of the "two line pass".
• "The Tag-up Rule" will permit play to continue if offensive players who preceded the puck into the zone return to the blue line and "tag" it.

Icing the Puck

• Icing the puck offenses still will be penalized by a face-off in the defensive zone of the team that ices the puck.
• A team that ices the puck cannot make a line change prior to the ensuing face-off.
• "Touch" icing will remain the practice, although the Linesman will have discretion to wave off apparent icing infractions if they are deemed the result of an attempted pass. Providing the discretion to the Linesman also should have the effect of reducing the number of situations in which a race for the puck might result in an injury to a player.

Instigator Rule

• A player who instigates a fight in the final five minutes of a game will receive a game misconduct and an automatic one-game suspension. The length of suspension would double for each additional incident.
• As well, the player's Coach will be fined $10,000 -- a fine that would double for each such incident.

Limits on Goaltenders

• The dimensions of goaltender equipment will be reduced by approximately 11 percent. In addition to a one-inch reduction (to 11') in the width of legpads, the blocking glove, upper-body protector, pants and jersey will also be reduced in size.
• Goaltenders may play the puck behind the goal line only in a trapezoid-shaped area defined by lines that begin six feet from either goal post and extend diagonally to points 28 feet apart at the endboards.

Referee Emphasis

• Zero tolerance on Interference, Hooking and Holding/Obstruction.
• Goaltenders who play the puck behind the goal line but outside the designated puck handling area will be penalized for delay of game.
• Goaltenders will be penalized for delaying the game if they "freeze" the puck unnecessarily.
• Any player who shoots the puck directly over the glass in his defending zone will be penalized for delay of game.

The Shootout

• Following a scoreless five-minute overtime, three players from each team participate in the order the coach selects.
• Each team takes three shots. The team with the most goals after those six shots is the winner.
• If the score remains tied, the shootout will proceed to a "sudden death" format.
• Regardless the number of goals scored during the shootout portion of overtime, the final score recorded for the game will give the winning team one more goal than the score at the end of regulation time.

Unsportsmanlike Conduct

• In addition to the minor penalty for unsportsmanlike conduct/diving that may be assessed by the Referee during a game, Hockey Operations will review game videos and assess fines to players who dive or embellish a fall or a reaction, or who feigns injury in an attempt to draw penalties.
• The first such incident will result in a warning letter being sent to the player.
• The second such incident will result in a $1,000 fine.
• The third such incident will result in a $2,000 fine.
• The fourth such incident will result in a one-game suspension.
• Public complaints or derogatory comments toward the game also will result in fines.

[villalobos]

Originally Posted by BasketofPuppies

Again, wake me up when Bill Wirtz allows local games to be televised

...or at least puts together a decent team.

You have a pretty damn good goalie now....

[Spliff]

Originally Posted by iDriveX

Just in case you didn't know...

New Rules for 2005

Or in Quicktime format using EA Sports' NHL 2006:

Dimensions

Goalies

Icing

Offsides

Red line

Shootouts


http://www.nhl.com/news/2005/09/234088.html