2022/2023 NHL/Wild Offseason-Season-Postseason Thread

Wow, this team keeps surprising me… HUGE 2 points

Suck it Av’s!

Little bit of a different vibe having Gus on the TNT post game interview vs Reavo

I’m officially impressed. The fact that THAT lineup could play like that against the Avs. They looked fast as hell tonight. Will be interesting to see if they can keep it going when Kirill comes back.

Huge win! If they can somehow beat Vegas both games, I could see them winning the whole conference! It was past my bedtime so I didn’t watch a second of the game but very happy to wake up & see a “W”.

JoeMX1825 wrote:

Wow, this team keeps surprising me… HUGE 2 points

basseyes wrote:

Suck it Av’s!

X2

Yuuge Win for the boys. I went to bed when it was 3-1 and just hoping to at least get a loser point. Pleasantly surprised with the win. Gonna have to watch the game recap to see what happened, but I did see there was a stupid delay of game penalty on Spurg that clearly hit the dasher first.

Charlie W wrote:

I was hoping Bruce woulda somehow snuck in with this tnt crew. He and biz would be hilarious.

Bruce would be perfect on TNT. He is just the best.

CaptainMusky wrote:

Yuuge Win for the boys. I went to bed when it was 3-1 and just hoping to at least get a loser point. Pleasantly surprised with the win. Gonna have to watch the game recap to see what happened, but I did see there was a stupid delay of game penalty on Spurg that clearly hit the dasher first.

The 3rd period the Wild sat on thier heels and let the Avs just pound on them, Gus held up…The Spurgeon penalty was impossible for a Ref to get right in real time (it just grazed the side board while already projecting upwards) that’s why the GM’s pushed for it to become a reviewable play in the future..Deano would have happily used his challenge for it last night…

There were moments of the game last night when the Wild played all of the different styles needed to be a successful playoff team, they were super heavy on the boards at times, super fast, super skilled, super defensive, it was fun to watch…and all of this with the “old 1st line” being mostly invisible again…the Powerplay can’t get Kirill back soon enough…

the next 2 Vegas games might determine if the Wild gets the #1 West seed overall if they can win both…2 days of practice will be nice to get guys healthy…

CaptainMusky wrote:

<div class=”d4p-bbt-quote-title”>Charlie W wrote:</div>
I was hoping Bruce woulda somehow snuck in with this tnt crew. He and biz would be hilarious.

Bruce would be perfect on TNT. He is just the best.

I agree, but isn’t he signed with TSN though?

Yeah, I think he is. Which sucks because we never get to see that. He still does NHL Network stuff from time to time.

That was an awesome game! Pretty dumb that the Spurgeon penalty can’t be reviewed. Thought the Wild deserved that W, but man are the Avs ridiculously fast. About 6 times the Wild had good scoring chances and within a few seconds the Avs were down the ice attacking in waves.

Yeah the Avs are a speedy team, but I thought the Wild looked pretty fast too. Much faster than when they played the Kraken.

Yeah the Avs are fast and play very fast – aggressive forecheck and defending that makes the rink feel half size when the other team has the puck. Then on rushes they spread the ice and attack the net. It’s a suffocating style and when they get rolling it can turn the momentum real quick. Wild have the size advantage and were able to use it last night – lots of banged up Avs throughout the game.

The penalty kill was the difference maker and Gus was so so solid again. Big 3rd period for the young goalie.

Spurgeon’s penalty should never be a penalty in the first place. It’s honestly insane they get 2 minutes for an incidental flip over the glass

CaptainMusky wrote:

Yeah the Avs are a speedy team, but I thought the Wild looked pretty fast too. Much faster than when they played the Kraken.

for sure they have speed, but they lack physicality as a team, this is where it looked like the Wild were manhandling them on the forecheck similar to what it looked like past years when the larger teams like the Predators/Blues/Golden Knights took it to the Wild physically…GMBG has built a team that has flexibility in how they can play, so there really isn’t matchup problems this season like the Wild have always had in the past… fun to watch…

I also think the Wild learned alot on HOW to play against the Avs and more specifically their 1st line…clog the lanes where MacKinnon can build up speed and be physical with their smaller D….

Let’s also not forget 48 goal scorer Mikko Rantaenen hit like 3 posts and missed on like 5 point blank chances last night…

JoeMX1825 wrote:

Let’s also not forget 48 goal scorer Mikko Rantaenen hit like 3 posts and missed on like 5 point blank chances last night…

Beat me to it – he’s so good and underrated

tswoboda wrote:

Spurgeon’s penalty should never be a penalty in the first place. It’s honestly insane they get 2 minutes for an incidental flip over the glass

How do you determine if its incidental or guys just shooting it out on purpose to get a whistle? If it wasn’t a penalty guys would be firing it out all the time at any hint of pressure or if somebody has a broken stick…

You can argue how icing isn’t much different, but the players can’t change and icing attempts can turn into a bad turn over if the puck doesn’t get out of the zone…there’s also the indirect angles that makes it easier to shoot the puck over the glass vs through a players body…

I find it hilarious how EVERY opposing team player on the ice and everyone on the bench throws their arms up and screams, as if the Refs aren’t watching the same play…

tswoboda wrote:

<div class=”d4p-bbt-quote-title”>JoeMX1825 wrote:</div>
Let’s also not forget 48 goal scorer Mikko Rantaenen hit like 3 posts and missed on like 5 point blank chances last night…

Beat me to it – he’s so good and underrated

I think he’s the “final form” of what Boldy can mold himself into 3-4 years from now once he adds bulk and muscle…

JoeMX1825 wrote:

How do you determine if its incidental or guys just shooting it out on purpose to get a whistle? If it wasn’t a penalty guys would be firing it out all the time at any hint of pressure or if somebody has a broken stick…

You can argue how icing isn’t much different, but the players can’t change and icing attempts can turn into a bad turn over if the puck doesn’t get out of the zone…there’s also the indirect angles that makes it easier to shoot the puck over the glass vs through a players body…

You figured out the solution all on your own – make it the same as icing.

But yeah they will be firing it out non-stop just look how it’s a huge epidemic in college and high school and youth, wait a minute……

tswoboda wrote:

<div class=”d4p-bbt-quote-title”>JoeMX1825 wrote:</div>
How do you determine if its incidental or guys just shooting it out on purpose to get a whistle? If it wasn’t a penalty guys would be firing it out all the time at any hint of pressure or if somebody has a broken stick…

You can argue how icing isn’t much different, but the players can’t change and icing attempts can turn into a bad turn over if the puck doesn’t get out of the zone…there’s also the indirect angles that makes it easier to shoot the puck over the glass vs through a players body…

You figured out the solution all on your own – make it the same as icing.

But yeah they will be firing it out non-stop just look how it’s a huge epidemic in college and high school and youth, wait a minute……

if the GM’s hated it, they would have it removed right?… unless you think its a Bettman/Daly conspiracy to get more PP’s to make the game more exciting?

JoeMX1825 wrote:

if the GM’s hated it, they would have it removed… unless you think its a Bettman/Daly conspiracy to get more PP’s to make the game more exciting?

No tinfoil hat, I just think it’s a dumb rule. By the logic of that rule knocking the net off in the D-zone should be a penalty every single time as well. Because how are the refs supposed to make a judgement call if the goalie/defenseman did it on purpose or not?

tswoboda wrote:

<div class=”d4p-bbt-quote-title”>JoeMX1825 wrote:</div>
if the GM’s hated it, they would have it removed… unless you think its a Bettman/Daly conspiracy to get more PP’s to make the game more exciting?

No tinfoil hat, I just think it’s a dumb rule. By the logic of that rule knocking the net off in the D-zone should be a penalty every single time as well. Because how are the refs supposed to make a judgement call if the goalie/defenseman did it on purpose or not?

The GM’s are going to discuss the goalies knocking the net off at the Draft, there will need to be some cushion by the Refs as part of a goalies overall game is getitng up against the posts, but the situations pointed out to get the conversation started (several examples against the Wild) were pretty obvious imo…I think the refs are already pretty consistant calling players knocking it off as it’s pretty obvious…

JoeMX1825 wrote:

I think the refs are already pretty consistant calling players knocking it off as it’s pretty obvious…

But no way they could do that with shooting the puck over the glass, right

tswoboda wrote:

<div class=”d4p-bbt-quote-title”>JoeMX1825 wrote:</div>
I think the refs are already pretty consistant calling players knocking it off as it’s pretty obvious…

But no way they could do that with shooting the puck over the glass, right

When they shoot the puck out its a panic play under pressure and should be penalized imo, if they have ANY time, they can easily just put it off the glass…obviously there are situations where the puck rolls up and is catapulted into the stands by accident…

After all this back and forth it really sounds we agree lol

Last night Dumba dropped his stick in the corner, then a forward handed him a stick, then that forward grabbed a new stick from the bench. I swear that just happened somewhere recently and was called a penalty, might have been a college game. Anyone remember what I’m talking about?

I think that was a college game. No idea why that would be considered a penalty. How would the refs know the stick isnt actually broken and abandoned?

“For example, players can hand each other replacement sticks, but it’s a penalty if anyone “throws, tosses, slides or shoots” one. A skater can give his stick to a goaltender, but not vice versa. A player who has a stick thrown to him from the bench doesn’t get a penalty; the thrower does instead.”

USA Hockey description:

https://www.usahockeyrulebook.com/page/show/1084649-rule-605-broken-stick

Fun game last night. Watched the whole thing but too tired to post afterwards. Agree with Joe they were on their heels way too much in the 3rd. But… overall an impressive win. Gus made a lot of big saves went 42/44 or something like that. Got helped by the post a couple times as Colorado was all over us in the 3rd. Very much a playoff-like game. Let’s Go!!

CaptainMusky wrote:

I think that was a college game. No idea why that would be considered a penalty. How would the refs know the stick isnt actually broken and abandoned?

Handing another player your stick is not a penalty in college hockey. My guess would be that if a penalty were called, it would be because the stick was thrown.

Youth, HS, College, and NHL all have some version of a rule forbidding the throwing of sticks. You can’t toss another player your stick, you can’t fling a stick across the ice for another player to pick up, and the bench can’t throw a stick onto the ice for a player to catch or pick up.

Great game by the Wild last night, especially considering the oddball lineup with Goose at wing and the missing players.

Q: Why is icing reviewable, but puck over glass DoG is not?
A: This is Gary Bettman’s NHL. Lots of things don’t make any sense.

Kudos to Steel for coming out ready to play. Talk about a strong-on-your-stick goal, that was awesome.

Freddy Hockey, burnin’ the Avs shorthanded. Love it.

Interesting article in the Athletic speculating about playoff lineups for the Wild. Some interesting decisions with the way things have turned out with Johansson/Boldy/Ek bromance. If Nyquist is healthy and plays on a 3rd line, then there’s a whole logjam for the 4th line. This could leave us in a very good situation as far as being able to replace an injured player if needed.

Another interesting game coming up with Team in a Box Vegas leading the Pac. Should have a playoff feel to it as well with Vegas trying to fend off a surging LA Kings team.

Vegas is the most penalized team in the league. Wild better be working on the PP.

TheFamousGrouse wrote:

Vegas is the most penalized team in the league. Wild better be working on the PP.

They’re the least penalized (minors) and by a significant margin. They also draw close to the least. No team has played more 5on5 minutes than Vegas