Re: The NHL 2013-14 Thread
 

I'll allow it

Re: The NHL 2013-14 Thread
 

I am legitimately afraid of this, even with Varly in the lineup.

The team has faced no real adversity up until now. Ive been interested all season in seeing how they handle it.

Re: The NHL 2013-14 Thread
 

I'm not going to spend my afternoon investigating each one of those examples you provided. I stand corrected, certainly you have shown that quick turnarounds can happen in the NHL.

I will instead take the position that nothing other than Colorado's early-season record supports the notion that they have truly turned it around. They certainly have plenty of talent but I think they need to improve their peripheral statistics to sustain their success. And because their puck possession is pretty poor, they shouldn't become desperate in looking for a goalie and potentially jeopardize future success by giving up too much.

Re: The NHL 2013-14 Thread
 

Avs just traded Steve Downie for Max Talbot.

Re: The NHL 2013-14 Thread
 

Bron, can you post NHL ranks for puck posession? I'm actually interested to see it.

Re: The NHL 2013-14 Thread
 

Yes. Now i can like Talbot again

Re: The NHL 2013-14 Thread
 

he could still win a goalie brawl or at least be willing to start one, I'm sure of that.

Re: The NHL 2013-14 Thread
 

http://stats.hockeyanalysis.com/team...T&sortdir=DESC

This is a good website. To my knowledge, nobody keeps track of time of possession. Instead, Corsi (shots on goal + missed shots + blocked shots) is used as a proxy for puck possession. The idea being that the team that spends more time in the offensive zone will have a higher number of pucks directed at the opposition's goal.

So, not that hard of an idea and I"m not sure why some folks react so negatively toward it. The fact is, wins are determined by goals scored. So at the end of the day, these statistics don't always predict what will happen. Of course they don't.

But! The sample size for goals scored is very small and therefore very difficult to use to predict what will happen in the future. That's why many people use Corsi events, because we have thousands of these events per team per season. Sample is larger and more reliable.

Look at the numbers last year. You have LA, Boston, Chicago near the top. Look at 09-10, where the Hawks were absolutely dominant in their Coris/Fenwick/Shots numbers and won the Cup.

Re: The NHL 2013-14 Thread
 

Conflicted with how I feel about this, but leaning more towards liking it.

On one hand, Talbot is the epitome of a hockey player. His attitude and Stanley Cup experience is everything you want a young team to see first hand. I'm very excited for that reason.

However, Downie has really matured and found great chemistry with Duchene and O'Reilly playing on the top line. He's proven he can hang out on top lines while still providing sand paper and grit that's given Duch and O'Reilly more freedom to make things happen. His loss will be felt on that top line and on a foreward core that is high on speed and finesse, but lower on grit.

Re: The NHL 2013-14 Thread
 

Talbot for Downie straight up.

Ugh.

Re: The NHL 2013-14 Thread
 

Ok...let me try and explain this to you in some way you might understand...

http://www.teamrankings.com/nfl/stat...sion-net-of-ot

Tell me...are the Bucs a better team than the Patriots because they have a better average time of possession?

It's along the same idea (but probably an even less relevant stat in hockey), obviously you'd love to possess the puck more than the other team (same in football you'd rather be on offense than defense), but it is FAR from telling the whole story.

I've said this to you before, and I'll say it again, take stats with a grain of salt.

Hockey is a crazy game, and isn't baseball, but you keep trying to make it that way.

Re: The NHL 2013-14 Thread
 

The only thing the Avs need to "prove" to anyone is that 10-1-0 record. That doesn't happen by accident.

Re: The NHL 2013-14 Thread
 

That about sums it up :lol

Re: The NHL 2013-14 Thread
 

:lol :thumbsup

Don't be too worried, Matt. Downie has proven all year he can play on top lines while still providing grit. He's also stopped taking dumb penalties. We'll see if that continues as he plays for the Flyers.

Love Talbot, but another thing I worry about is disrupting team chemistry after a start like this one. Now, Varly's already done a good job of that in the last couple days, but you hate to shake up the lineup too much when you're 10-1. The timing of this trade is interesting... maybe to take everyone's minds off of Varly a little? Or just coincidence?

Re: The NHL 2013-14 Thread
 

This trade smells of Homer's usual awfulness.

Re: The NHL 2013-14 Thread
 

I don't really understand the trade personally. Was this needed by either team?

Re: The NHL 2013-14 Thread
 

Non-hockey related, I did get a second interview so I guess I did at least ok in that first one.

Re: The NHL 2013-14 Thread
 

I'm with you on this, not fully, but I am. there's something to be said for puck possession but there is also something to be said for be able to keep the puck out of the net (defense and stud goaltending) and being able to score. Phoenix was 12th last season according to that site but didn't even make the playoffs while Minnesota was 21st and did. Minnesota can score better than Phoenix, but Phoenix can play better defense. you have to be able to put the puck in the net is what it comes down to.

I don't like this comparison, at all. These are two COMPLETELY different sports. There are so many more factors that have nothing to do with hockey.

- in hockey the same guys play offense and defense, it's not that way in football, obviously. If your time of possession is higher, it means your defense is getting off the field more. worse defenses are towards the bottom of that list. Tampa Bay is a top 10 defense in terms of yardage allowed, so the offense gets the ball more than most teams, and their offense is 2nd to last in points and dead last in points per game. the theory of "the more you have the puck the less they can score" in hockey does not translate to "the more you have the ball the less they can score" in football. There are too many seperate factors.

I absolutely agree that you need to take stats with a grain of salt, but to completely discredit advanced stats is wrong. There is absolutely a correlation between successful playoff teams being at the top of Bron's list every single year and unsuccessful teams being towards the bottom. you can't say that about time of possession in football.

Minnesota makes the playoffs in 11-12 through half the year and LA doesn't. we all know how that year ended. Let's let this breathe a little more. It's still early.

Re: The NHL 2013-14 Thread
 

What. This is ridiculous. We aren't talking about football. You cannot compare the two things like this.

Of course shots do not tell the whole story. And goals tell us what happened, but not necessarily what will happen. Shots give us at least something that has some predictive quality this early in the season.

Not sure why you are trying to compare this to football/baseball/whatever. The fact is, in all sporting leagues (be it the NBA, NFL, MLB, EPL, NHL), statistics are being utilized more and more to provide a more unbiased examination of teams and players. Not sure why the fans are so resistant to the idea.

Re: The NHL 2013-14 Thread
 

Not necessarily needed, but I see the logic.

Avs get a guy who's been to the Finals twice and plays like a champion. Coach Roy will want his players watching everything Talbot does... in the locker room, the weight room, practice, video sessions, and during games. I'm positive he was brought in more for his attitude than his skill. Which shouldn't be doubted. He will add needed defensive responsibility and grit to the third line. Like I said before, the Avs are lacking in toughness up front.

Philly gets a tough customer who can play on the top two lines. He won't contribute as much, but he will open up space for the skill players like OMGCG and Vinny.
Awesome! So the whole goalie thing is gonna work out, eh?

Re: The NHL 2013-14 Thread
 

Ugh.

I compared it to football because you clearly don't understand hockey and was just trying to put it into perspective of a more universal sport. I'm not saying the two are exactly the same.

I officially give up on you. I tried.

http://youtu.be/MVYA-WS56J8

Re: The NHL 2013-14 Thread
 

This statement doesn't even make sense.

Re: The NHL 2013-14 Thread
 

Looks that way. I mean the Avs called me up at the last minute. Apparently something happened last night with theirs.

Re: The NHL 2013-14 Thread
 

Tim Moore: the ace up Joe Sakic's sleeve.

Re: The NHL 2013-14 Thread
 

@ryanparkerdp: #Avalanche say team will not replace #Varlamov, and he is traveling with the team to take on Dallas tomorrow night.

Geez

Re: The NHL 2013-14 Thread
 

Wwoooowww. Traveling with the team?

Re: The NHL 2013-14 Thread
 

Roy continues to say a great big f$&@ you to everyone not on his team.

Re: The NHL 2013-14 Thread
 

I miss the Towel Bot

Re: The NHL 2013-14 Thread
 

So there's no way Varly is actually gonna play tonight is there? The fact that he's traveling and dressing is mind blowing to me. This is a pretty embarrassing situation for the NHL and for the Avalanche in particular. Obviously no one blames them for what Varly did, but they're still gonna allow him to dress?? Pretty ballsy if you ask me.

Still can't believe this is Varlamov involved in all this. I mean I know he wasn't the Caps goalie for THAT long, but he is the guy that was in net for us when we won the Classic, and also the goalie who made the most unbelievable save I've ever personally witnessed live at an NHL game.

The whole story is just bananas.

Re: The NHL 2013-14 Thread
 

Roy gonna Roy.

Reports saying Jiggy will be in net tonight.

But yeah, I agree that it's crazy. There's the whole "innocent until proven guilty" thing, but...

You have to wonder how the fans in Dallas will treat him. The fans there are fairly apathetic compared to other cities, but he might take some crap.