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2024-25 NHL Misc. Thread

As much as I like Shesterkin to carry a huge load with the Rangers, is that team even good enough to not stay out of that non-playoff mix in the East with teams like Pittsburgh and Boston who seem to be trending downwards?

If you look at the state of the rosters of younger teams like Ottawa and Columbus you would think those types of teams will replace the Bruins and Pens and even Rangers as East playoff entrants next year and beyond.
NYR will figure out something, because their core is too good (and expensive) to screw around with for long. That said, their habit of signing older free agents and over-extending their stars is biting them in the butt hard. Arizona's not around to soak up everybody's crappy contracts anymore and the Rangers need to get Zibanejad and Kreider off the books in the worst kind of way. That's $14 million on the books for the two of them for 2 more seasons at a minimum. They've got $8 million in Cap space and plenty of their own RFAs to sign. And changing the coach will probably help a bit since they clearly quit on Lavi ... but only a bit.
 
BTW, this is exactly why I constantly bitched and moaned when Arizona would bail out teams by taking on Cap for older guys ... and or guys who weren't even playing anymore. Teams SHOULD have to deal with the consequences of their own poor roster management, and having one team playing by a different set of rules skewed that accountability dramatically.
 
Lady Byng finalists. It was a bad season for Slavin, he had 8 PIM

Anze Kopitar - 4 PIM
Brayden Point - 7 PIM. Should you win this trophy if you’ve had a fight?
Jack Eichel - 8 PIM
 
Kopitar should win. As good as he is defensively, to only manage to take 2 minor penalties the entire season is remarkable.
 
I mean, not only that ... Kopitar is a class act. I can't remember the last time I saw him make anything even remotely like a dirty play. Can't say the same for the other two finalists.
 
Bottom line ... once you get to the playoffs, at least until you (hopefully) reach the Finals, the game times will be erratic and mostly suck. You wanted to be here. That's part of the cost
 
As sickening as that was to watch as a Canes fan, imagine how Avs fans felt watching Rantanen single handedly take that game and series away from them. OUCH!!!!
 
Sure wish this version of Rantanen had shown up in Raleigh.
Yeah, and not just in that game either. He took over the whole series in the last three games. Up to then he had mostly skated around looking fairly listless, and then ... boom. It kicked in and he started ringing up points like a pinball machine
 
Jack Adams finalists

Scott Arniel
Spencer Carberry
Martin St. Louis

Can’t quibble with any of them
I mean ... Jim Montgomery deserves a shout despite getting fired in Boston. The fact that he was able to get that Blues team on the level they were on to end the season was nothing short of remarkable. They SUCKED early on.

But yes, based on the normal criteria ... coach who does way better than pre season media predictions ... those are your clear finalists.
 
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