2024/2025 NHL/WILD Offseason-Season-Postseason Thread

CaptainMusky wrote:

Vegas in 3.

wtf bro

JoeMX1825 wrote:

I’ll play the homer card and say the Wild shock the world and beat Vegas in 6

As always, I agree with Joe

JoeMX1825 wrote:

Buium – Bogo

Buium probably isnt seeing the ice this playoffs unless there is an injury right?

tswoboda wrote:

<div class=”d4p-bbt-quote-title”>CaptainMusky wrote:</div>
Vegas in 3.

wtf bro

Reverse psychology.

KP wrote:

<div class=”d4p-bbt-quote-title”>JoeMX1825 wrote:</div>
Buium – Bogo

Buium probably isnt seeing the ice this playoffs unless there is an injury right?

I think he plays, there’s no scenario on the ice where Merrill is the better option than Buium (don’t say pk) the only thing he has on him is experience (in 37 playoff games Merrill has 2 assists and is a -7) Buium’s potential outweighs anything Merrill brings…I do think they’ll do what they can to protect his 5-5 minutes, but he’s ran a top Powerplay unit at Denver and the WJC for the last 2 years, he knows how to move the puck, find the open guy and most importantly not panic with it…

and honestly, what do we have to lose? The current 5 forward powerplay has been dreadful the last 5+ games (minus the gong show Sharks game) with most of the time spent recovering clears because they can’t gain the zone, Boldy playing QB is a turnover nightmare….

Merrill played 10:38 of icetime last night, how is giving Buium those 10+ minutes (If not to mostly just play on the PP) not a better idea? We NEED to score powerplay goals in the playoffs…

He’s got 2-3 practices to show Hynes and GMBG what he can do…

Dont think they’ll win a series but at least they drew the weaker half of the bracket. The central is a gauntlet. The pacific isnt as good by comparison. Better odds on paper at least.

Faber had 9 shots on goal last night, he’s really upped his game the last 10 games…

I still can’t believe the save Dostal makes on Ek’s first shot, save of the year?

https://x.com/PeteBlackburn/status/1912334682525520369

Hate to be that guy but does anyone remember what playoff TV will be like? And by that I mean, I know they’re pretty much all national broadcast but are some on FanDuel as well? The reason I ask is because Marney Gellner was on KFAN talking about the Wolves playoff series and said that for NBA first round they still allow some broadcasts to be locally i.e. FanDuel. I’m currently having issues with Youtube TV so national TV broadcasts are not my friend until that gets solved.

Dan wrote:

Hate to be that guy but does anyone remember what playoff TV will be like? And by that I mean, I know they’re pretty much all national broadcast but are some on FanDuel as well? The reason I ask is because Marney Gellner was on KFAN talking about the Wolves playoff series and said that for NBA first round they still allow some broadcasts to be locally i.e. FanDuel. I’m currently having issues with Youtube TV so national TV broadcasts are not my friend until that gets solved.

1st round games are on the local broadcast (except for possible nationally televised weekend ABC games) 2nd round and beyond will only be on TNT-TBS/ESPN/ABC

JoeMX1825 wrote:

<div class=”d4p-bbt-quote-title”>Dan wrote:</div>
Hate to be that guy but does anyone remember what playoff TV will be like? And by that I mean, I know they’re pretty much all national broadcast but are some on FanDuel as well? The reason I ask is because Marney Gellner was on KFAN talking about the Wolves playoff series and said that for NBA first round they still allow some broadcasts to be locally i.e. FanDuel. I’m currently having issues with Youtube TV so national TV broadcasts are not my friend until that gets solved.

1st round games are on the local broadcast (except for possible nationally televised weekend ABC games) 2nd round and beyond will only be on TNT-TBS/ESPN/ABC

And we will be at like 9pm or later.

last thing i’ll say about last night’s game is, mentally, that was about the most perfect way for a team to enter the playoffs when they almost blew it…team vibes gotta be pretty high right now…

Charlie W wrote:

And we will be at like 9pm or later

yup… they might play a day game on Sunday though?

I might be able to watch a weekend game if they get a reasknable time slot. Otherwise I expect to miss most of these games that will start around the 9pm time slots. We’re flyover country here so they dont prioritize it with reasonable start times.

gim wrote:

I might be able to watch a weekend game if they get a reasknable time slot. Otherwise I expect to miss most of these games that will start around the 9pm time slots. We’re flyover country here so they dont prioritize it with reasonable start times.

outside of the NCAA Basketball tournament games being on 10 different channels throughout the first few rounds, how else would you televise all of the NHL playoff games with a 3 hour difference and the likelihood that 1 or 2 games will go to overtime each night with no idea when they will end? They all can’t be on at the same time? I get that it sucks, but it is what it is…

Hate to be the bearer of bad news but… Vegas has a very good powerplay. #2 on the season, and #1 since the 4-nations break. Good news is it’s been cold the last 10 games and their PK isn’t very good. I’ll still take Vegas over having to see Hellebyuck in R1. And as Gim mentioned, the Pacific side of the bracket is really weak this year – good time to cross over.

That’s the reality. I feel like years ago playoff games in sports with series (basketball, baseball, hockey) started games at 5, maybe 6, then a later game at 7 or 8. And there would be multiple games going on at once. And there would always be complaints when there’d be a close game but the networks switched to a different game that was started. Or the opposite, maybe you didn’t necessarily care about the other game but it went long and now you had to miss the intros/start of your game because of it. This ensure fans can watch every bit of every game, but it just means it takes a lot longer. I can’t imagine what it’s like being a player with warmups complete and waiting around longer with a time TBD because another game is running longer.

gim wrote:

Dont think they’ll win a series but at least they drew the weaker half of the bracket. The central is a gauntlet. The pacific isnt as good by comparison. Better odds on paper at least.

Not sure how you can say that when you have last years Western conf champ on your side?

JoeMX1825 wrote:

last thing i’ll say about last night’s game is, mentally, that was about the most perfect way for a team to enter the playoffs when they almost blew it…team vibes gotta be pretty high right now…

I definitely agree with this and hope it transfers into Game 1. It almost didn’t shape up this way and they were looking at best-case scenario being they back into the playoffs, and even that good news wouldn’t have come until late Thursday night if Calgary were to lose then.

It was a pretty boring game that probably caused a lot of us to think “yeah…this team ain’t gonna fare to well” and then a very late goal combined with putting HOF in net and an OT-winner at least created some good momentum and vibes.

Justin riegel wrote:

Not sure how you can say that when you have last years Western conf champ on your side?

I’m normally an Oilers defender but vibes in Edmonton are at an all time low. They’re stumbling into the playoffs after a mostly bad regular season and without their #1D, and recent lower body injuries to both McDavid and Draisaitl. Plus their goalie situation is somehow even more questionable than the last couple years.

Justin riegel wrote:

<div class=”d4p-bbt-quote-title”>gim wrote:</div>
Dont think they’ll win a series but at least they drew the weaker half of the bracket. The central is a gauntlet. The pacific isnt as good by comparison. Better odds on paper at least.

Not sure how you can say that when you have last years Western conf champ on your side?

missing Ekholm is huge for the Oilers, but yeah, McJesus and King Leon can win a series by themselves… I’d still rather play them or the Kings vs the Avs or the Stars…

This is going to be the first playoff series for the Wild in a long time where we’ll be able to matchup lines the way we want to, especially having a guy like Ek being able to go up against the other teams top center (Eichel) and hopefully frustrate the $hit out of him all series…Faber and Brodin matched up against him as well…Eichel stirs the drink…

JoeMX1825 wrote:

especially having a guy like Ek being able to go up against the other teams top center (Eichel)

There’s a bit of history there. A long time ago but this is peak Joel Eriksson Ek

https://x.com/cjzero/status/1196962050699857920

Check the standings. Clearly the central is the class of the west this season. Not the pacific.

A pacific game starting at 9pm our time is understandable. A central start time of 9pm when its being played here is a joke. No one on the east coast can even watch it starting at 10pm.

I love that tswoboda
I love Ek
Just laughed when I watched it

JoeMX1825 wrote:

last thing i’ll say about last night’s game is, mentally, that was about the most perfect way for a team to enter the playoffs when they almost blew it…team vibes gotta be pretty high right now…

I would agree with this except it was the Ducks,the Wild were at home and with a fully healthy Wild line up. Given all those circumstances and the importance of the game the Wild should have put a beat down on a non playoff team with a score of like 6-2. That would make me feel more confident I know that. If the Wild are high on themselves right now they are whistling through the graveyard. This should have never come down to a 20 seconds left drama game.

However, I agree with your take they make it to the second round. This team is just psychotic enough to do exactly that!

Ice Cap wrote:

I would agree with this except it was the Ducks,the Wild were at home and with a fully healthy Wild line up. Given all those circumstances and the importance of the game the Wild should have put a beat down on a non playoff team with a score of like 6-2. That would make me feel more confident I know that. If the Wild are high on themselves right now they are whistling through the graveyard. This should have never come down to a 20 seconds left drama game.

Completely with you here. The 60 minutes of regulation was boring and miserable and disappointing, even including the tying goal with 20 seconds left. The 5 minutes of OT Flower greatness made up for it though.

How much are we going to talk and hear about Buium over the next two weeks? I think I’m already sick of it, and all the second guessing, and using it as the excuse every single time something bad happens or they don’t score on a powerplay. Personally, I don’t expect they’re going to play him unless there’s an injury. But also wouldn’t be shocked to see him.

The closest comparable situation in recent memory is Cale Makar, who hopped directly into game 3 of the first round after losing in the frozen four. They with Sam Girard in the top 4D and on the 2nd powerplay unit, and he scored in his first NHL game. Comparing anyone to Cale Makar with what we know now is definitely a stretch. Trying to rewind my brain back to 2019 I think the differences are Makar had a bit more dominant final college season. He was the obvious choice for the Hobey compared with Buium being kind of a 3 way tie. That’s splitting hairs and deep in the margins, but there was a small difference. The bigger difference I see is the raw physical tools of Makar popped a lot more than with Buium. Not a knock against Buium but Makar was/is a generational skater and was already stronger with an elite shot. Buium is a great skater, but not Makar, and he seems to rely more on elite puck skills a hockey iq that is off the charts. Makar was also a full year older, so maybe part of why the physical tools were more obvious. I remember his first NHL game and mistaking him for Nathan Mackinnnon more than once and immediately thinking how screwed the rest of the league was with those two on the same team.

tswoboda wrote:

The closest comparable situation in recent memory is Cale Makar, who hopped directly into game 3 of the first round after losing in the frozen four. They with Sam Girard in the top 4D and on the 2nd powerplay unit, and he scored in his first NHL game. Comparing anyone to Cale Makar with what we know now is definitely a stretch. Trying to rewind my brain back to 2019 I think the differences are Makar had a bit more dominant final college season. He was the obvious choice for the Hobey compared with Buium being kind of a 3 way tie. That’s splitting hairs and deep in the margins, but there was a small difference. The bigger difference I see is the raw physical tools of Makar popped a lot more than with Buium. Not a knock against Buium but Makar was/is a generational skater and was already stronger with an elite shot. Buium is a great skater, but not Makar, and he seems to rely more on elite puck skills a hockey iq that is off the charts. Makar was also a full year older, so maybe part of why the physical tools were more obvious. I remember his first NHL game and mistaking him for Nathan Mackinnnon more than once and immediately thinking how screwed the rest of the league was with those two on the same team.

except the thinking with playing Buium is that he’s replacing Jon f’ing Merrill…it’s 10 minutesish of icetime a game, who can impact a game more in those 10 minutes? Merrill or Buium?

I think comparing Makar to Buium is pretty interesting, obviously we already know what Makar has turned into (probably the greatest overall defenseman since Bobby Orr?) All we have to compare Buium to Makar with is their 2 season NCAA careers and WJC performances, in 75 NCAA games Makar had 70 points, in 83 games Buium had 98 points, their WJC stats are Makar with 3g 5a in 7 games, Buium with 5g 6a in 11 games. Zeev did all this as a mostly 17-18 year old kid! (Makar was playing in the Alberta Junior Hockey League as a 17 & 18 year old) That age difference is a HUGE factor imo.

Physically, at still just 19.25 years old, Zeev should continue to fill out his frame and get some man strength (he’s physically bigger than Makar is at 26 years old) obviously he’s not stronger yet…Makar’s skating is maybe second only to McJesus, you could even argue its better, Zeev will never have the speed of Makar, but what he lacks in speed he gains in shiftiness (although its still close)

Makar took his college dominating game to the NHL and never missed a beat and then continued to improve on it, time will tell with Zeev, but how could you argue against him based on what he’s done sofar, especially when Makar struggled a bit in his rookie NCAA season and Zeev dominated his as a mostly 17 year old rookie…

I kind of agreed TSW. As much as the 20 seconds and OT were awesome this team basically backed into the playoffs. Granted Ek and KK were out. I just don’t see how they can compete with Vegas especially in the special teams front.
With that said get in and give it a whirl. The buyouts are officially over and there are some things to be excited about moving forward.
Playoff hockey is just another level and another learning experience for everyone. Either way hopefully it’s a building block to something bigger and stronger in the near future.

Ice Cap wrote:

I would agree with this except it was the Ducks,the Wild were at home and with a fully healthy Wild line up. Given all those circumstances and the importance of the game the Wild should have put a beat down on a non playoff team with a score of like 6-2

I don’t want to be like LaPanta and Carter last night and mention about 100 times that the Wild hit 4 posts in the 1st period, but they hit 4 posts in the 1st period, add that with the goofy ping-pong goal off Middleton’s skate deflection and if the puck moved a fraction of an inch on those plays it could have been 5-0 Wild after the 1st period, but after all that happened you could just see the doubt started to settle into the minds of the Wild players in the 2nd and 3rd periods and we got the game we saw…

nerves can be a biotch to play with…

I will be shocked if we win more than one game in the series. The excuses are over after this season, and it will be an interesting summer to see what happens. I expect BG has one more year to show progress or he will be on the hot seat rather quickly. Opening up a spot for our comrade Joe as the new GM.