The 1975 Tampa Bay Rowdies of the old North American Soccer League.
NHL playoffs start tonight!
- Thread starter EconSean
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The 1975 Tampa Bay Rowdies of the old North American Soccer League.
Both finalist from last year get bounced in the second round. I saw a lot of predictions having Nashville hoisting the Cup before the playoffs began.
Good win for Winnipeg (and all of Canada) last night, but how pissed will that whole country be when their last team gets bounced by an expansion team that plays in a desert?
They're a returning finalist and have the best regular season record. There's no explanation for their performance last night.
A lot of butthurt fans in Nashville today.
Congrats to Winnipeg, Nashville had zero forecheck and the two strange early goals were enough. Pekka Rinne was pulled 3 times in the series.
On G&W this morning, they said that was the earliest pulling of a goalie in Stanley Cup Playoffs game 7 history.
Playing in a desert is better than playing in Winnipeg, I think even most Canadians would agree with that. Vegas is an expansion team in name-only. That became evident pretty early on in the season. It's shocking that it's been 25 years since a Canadian team won the Cup. This is going to be a great series. I think (hope) it will go the distance.
I’m excited for both conference finals. I’d like Ovie to make the Finals at least, and you’ve got a great story in the West, whichever team comes through.
Since the playoffs started I’ve thought that the Jets would win the Cup and I’m sticking to that.
Oh, and Go Pens (next year)!
Since the playoffs started I’ve thought that the Jets would win the Cup and I’m sticking to that.
Oh, and Go Pens (next year)!
That stat about a Canadian team not hoisting the Cup in 25 years is crazy. We won our first Natty that year on the back of Charlie Ward! Another crazy stat is DC going 75 professional sports seasons without making a semi-final. Last championship was the 92' Redskins.
Vegas is an expansion team and not in name only. They benefited from Pittsburgh having two viable options (1 was unprotected) and mostly the fact that the NHL is deep with parity.
The NHL dropped the number of players a team could protect pretty significantly compared to the last expansion draft. Other factors like the salary cap made this draft different from previous ones. They definitely have played above their talent level, but they are still pretty talented. It has worked out well for them. The Atlanta Thrashers they are not.
No, they are the exact definition of an expansion team. They didn't exist at the end of last season. They had no players and no farm system. They benefited greatly from the NHL setting rules for the expansion draft that forced existing teams to leave exposed some decent talent (unlike what most pro sports franchises have done historically). They did a good job in free agency, they've had some good luck, they're a fairly talented team.
But they are still an expansion team, and I guarantee you if they win this series every hockey fan in Canada will be pissed off. I base my opinion on how pissed I was watching the marlins win a couple of World Series early in their existence when my Red Sox hadn't won a title in my dad's lifetime.
I don't disagree with this. The expansion playing field was changed for them, which gave them a good team and also (through GM moves) set them up with a nice cache of pick to bolster their farm system.
Red Sox fans are delusional. They're basically pissed off at anything that isn't good for them. The worst winning and worst losing fan-base in pro sports.
The average Canadian hockey fan might be upset at the ineptitude of their own GM, but not at Vegas. Some will be pissed, for sure, but not all. Every Canadian will be jealous for sure.
Don’t know if anyone can beat the Caps if they continue playing like this (big if, I realize). That sequence at the end of the 1st period was a backbreaker for Tampa.
The Caps could beat the 1980's Soviets playing like that, but it's surely impossible to maintain that level of play over time. I still expect a 6 or 7 game series...Unless TB gets pounded again in game 2 and then "gives up".
Oddly enough, I find myself rooting for them. As much as Canada reveres and supports hockey, they deserve to have some long-awaited success, ay?
I did too. Have no rooting interest in either team but found myself pulling for Winnipeg.
I’m hoping for Jets vs. Caps, although Vegas and Caps would be great too. Nothing against Tampa, but I’d like to see a first time winner. Over the years, I’ve grown to like Ovie and would like to see him skate the Cup, but I think this is the Jets’ time.
I wouldn’t have expected this, under any circumstances. The Caps are doing just about everything right (feel free to call me Captain Obvious), and the Bolts just can’t anwser.
We’ll see if the Jets can lock in the stranglehold on Vegas tonight.
But they are an expansion team just like Atlanta in many other ways. Don't think it's very clear to you what happens behind the scenes to run an NHL franchise. No biggie, there are some great story lines which is good for the visibility of the game.
I’ve been following the NHL since the early 80s. If you think this expansion process has been equal to those in the past, that’s fine.
I don’t begrudge it. They paid a ton of money (especially by NHL standards). A team in Vegas is great for the league. They were given a boost and overachieved well beyond that.
Never said it was equal, said they absolutely were an expansion team, which you said was true "in name only".
Their success has many factors and it goes way beyond what they were "given".
I've learned that when something seems too good to be true, then it's almost always the case.It is.
Tampa wins 3-2, one more victory to make the finals!
The Caps played so well in games 1,2, and 4. The series would be over except for Vasillevskiy becoming an octopus. Here’s to Ovechkin and gang winning tonight!
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