Detroit Red Wings & the NHL

[Mike]

It's a dark day for hockey.

[WingsFan]

I don't have a problem with LA winning the Cup. Brown is only the second american player as Caption to win it. After Pittsburgh and Montreal I really would have hated seeing NJ win it. I have hated them since 1995, another Cup and they would have 4 and the Red Wing comparisons would be endless. I'm not at all sorry to see Brodeur get hammered. The St. Louis Blues now hold the dubious distinction of longest tenured NHL franchise without a Stanley Cup.

[Tony G]

I still have Dallas with an asterisk

[Optimus Prime]

LA won in convincing fashion as Quick sets SCF record.


Quick is the third American-born Conn Smythe winner, adding one more dominant game to a run in which he set NHL records for save percentage (.946) and goals-against average (1.41) among goalies who played at least 15 postseason games.

[entropy]

the kings has been playing hocky in LA for 44 years. I'm ok with them winning.

[Hannibal]

I've got money says that neither NJ nor LA will make it out of the first round next year.

Congrats to the LA Kings, this year's "least mediocre team".

[Mike]

WingsFan, I can relate to your feelings about the Devils. Rooting for them brought me no joy. I even like a lot of the players for the Kings and are happy for them. I just hate LA, the city, their teams, their fans. Everything about that teeming cesspool.

As for the Kings' and Devils' immediate futures, NJ had one last miracle run in them but they're toast. Parise will be gone and you can't expect Brodeur to play at that level for a whole season. They'll miss the playoffs as they usually do the season after a long playoff run. LA, OTOH, is poised to be among the best in the league for a while. They aren't going anywhere anytime soon. I don't know how long they have the nucleus of that team locked up but they are young and just entering their prime. Plus they have the best goalie in hockey who can steal games if not an entire series. They're big, physical, and with the addition of Carter have some pretty good scorers with Richards, Brown, Kopitar, and Doughty on the blue line.

[Optimus Prime]

The only reason LA even barely made the playoffs was because of Quick they even fired their coach mid-season. This team ranked 29th in "goals for" in the regular season but for some odd reason became red hot during the playoffs. They are not going to sneak up on anyone next year either.

[Mike]

But they didn't get Carter until March 15th and Gagne missed the last 47 games of the regular season with a concussion. Their offense will be much improved next year by having everybody healthy at the same time.

I'm not saying they automatically win the Cup next year but they'll be a fixture in the West for the next few years for sure. The bubble has officially burst in Vancouver and San Jose, Detroit seems to be regressing and Phoenix played way over their heads this playoff. LA isn't going anywhere.

[Hannibal]

Stanley Cup playoff ratings down 29 percent from last year. What a shock LMAO

http://www.thehockeynews.com/articles/47642-Stanley-Cup-finals-television-ratings-down-29-per-cent-from-last-year.html

[WM Wolverine]

NHL tries so hard to make the force the new hockey markets interest that they forget that what drives every sport is the elite teams/franchises. The original six should be carrying the sport, instead the leagues commish does everything he can do to prop up these markets that don't have a lot of interest in hockey.

[Optimus Prime]

NHL tries so hard to make the force the new hockey markets interest that they forget that what drives every sport is the elite teams/franchises. The original six should be carrying the sport, instead the leagues commish does everything he can do to prop up these markets that don't have a lot of interest in hockey.

I guess determining a Champion on the ice via a post-season playoff is passe?

[Hannibal]

IMHO the NHL could capture new markets a lot easier if they would encourage play styles that let the game's talented superstars shine the brightest and in the most entertaining way. The game's resurgence in popularity post-lockout was in no small part due to guys like Crosby and Ovechkin.

[Tony G]

The Original 6 is a passe concept for today's game. Rivalries are based on actual competition and intensity. A Red Wings-Rangers or Red Wings-Bruins game has meant very little since the 70's. In order for "The Original 6 to carry the sport", they would have to actually play like elite teams. This hasn't happened in NY, Toronto or Montreal in a while and Chicago and Boston are recent cases of lightning striking. The stratification you are seeking has gone away in the era of free agency and salary caps.

[DennisT]

Original 6 is a stupid term, even worse than Hockeytown. Nothing original about it.