Sharpshooter

That is indeed true. Michael Kay was talking about it during the game and he said nothing is wrong with health-wise, he just decided early on this season he was just done, that it was time.

ANYWAY, I'm very excited for this kid. He could wind up being the steal of the draft. Hopefully we'll find out in a couple of years or so.

LOL Thanks for the confirmation.

Thanks for the memories, Coyotes. I will always hold your late 90's teams of Roenick, Tkachuk and Khabibulin close to my heart. I really liked those teams. Other than that, it hasn't been so hot there for the most part. They did have Shane Doan, so that's something. Happy trails.

Washington has been playing shutdown playoff hockey for about two months or so. One thing the Rangers really need to stop doing is giving up the first goal. Despite their success, that's been a major problem for what feels like one or two months of hockey. You give Washington the lead off the bat, and they're just going to start grinding and frustrating you, and the Rangers may have some serious issues countering that.

This will be a cool watch, but at the same time, I don't want to be reminded of just how close this was and how it slipped through their fingers. Instead, the Rangers enter their worst stretch in team history and the rest is history with Sakic staying in Colorado.

Just like Washington for the last month or two. lol Nothing will come easily.

I mean Boston is definitely a step or two down from what they were last season. They are still really good, though. I'd put those three teams mentioned above them too, but they are legit contenders even if there are more chinks in the armor this year than that ultimate season they had prior. This is definitely Toronto's best chance at beating them, though.

Oh, they have one more game? Oops. lol I have no idea.

Boston is still a really good team, though, but yeah, they had a ton of loser points this year.

Wouldn't hate it. lol

I don't know about fairly regularly, but it can happen. It just happens more in the NHL because you can get rewarded for losing, and it makes a handful of teams more competitive and 'in the race' than really should be.

Yep. Sometimes Sam can go overboard and be a little too complimentary towards the other teams and players. But, I'd rather have that than the 'style' of Jack Edwards.

Only in the NHL can you lose more games than you win and make the playoffs. lol The loser point can really make a lot of teams look better than they really are.

Definitely bares watching. I think it's an interesting series. Toronto wanting to slay another dragon, meanwhile last season's first round ouster is still fresh in Boston's mind. Could be a good one.

Yeah I mentioned Panarin before, but I think Wilson is in their heads in general. I will think that way until proven otherwise, this is a great opportunity to exorcise those demons. It seems like we're more concerned with him than Ovechkin. lol

After that Wilson incident, Panarin never seemed the same whenever they played Washington. I think he was definitely still spooked to me. This year's Panarin has been a different animal, though, so we'll see. We're going to need the Panarin we got this year to have any chance at a deep run.

Some preferred Detroit because of their shaky goaltending situation. Reimer and Lyon don't really scare you in a seven-game series. They do have some very good talent up front, and will most likely make the playoffs next year. Honestly, the Rangers should beat any of these possible first round teams regardless. Also, Laviolette knows a thing or two about Washington, even though that was awhile ago.

LOL! The Devils series on last year wasn't on MSG was it? I don't even remember, as I tend to watch the national broadcasts anyway, and generally blacked that whole series out anyway. I remember the series against Pittsburgh the year before was on MSG, though. So, they might be able to cover the first round and the rest are network exclusives.

And Ovechkin had a strong finish to his season as well. Considering how started, to wind up with over 30, is quite something. The Rangers need to make this a quick series or they're asking for trouble.

Yeah, something definitely wasn't right. I wish him well there, but I will absolutely not miss hearing him. lol I remember when he used to do some national broadcasts. Thankfully he stopped awhile ago. We think Sam is bad sometimes with things, but it was getting worse with Jack.

Which means it's going at least six games. lol

Whomever comes out of the Atlantic might be pretty beat up. Boston has not been a great match up for Toronto, so that should be interesting.

Not at all, although it might have helped that year. I just thought at that moment these guys were really legit and it was going to be a fun year. Glad I was right.

The other guy is right too. I don't think I've seen a team who finished with the best record not be heavily favored to win the Cup. Sure some other teams may be better in other aspects, but still.