East semis

Ed Hillel

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My poor poor wife. This is worse than being a Canucks fan 4-7 years back.
 

TFP

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That first goal from Malkin was an absolute laser.

Was not expecting OT tonight. Would be a backbreaker of a loss for the Caps.
 

Ed Hillel

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Ohhhh, gonna get intetesting with Crosby dead. Poor guy, Lindross comes to mind.
 

McDrew

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Should have been 2 to Ovie for the slash, 2 to Niskannen for cross-checking. Crosby dropped a foot and a half in the last second and instead of being a good shot to the chest, it was a bad shot to the head.

But, since Sid's a superstar, Nikannen's going to get a couple, because this league is a clown show sometimes.
 

kenneycb

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He got the 5 and a game because the player got a head injury as a result of an infraction, so the ref's hands are tied there.

That said, it seems more like Niskanen was bracing for Crosby running into him and then Crosby lost balance or whatever and came in lower than he anticipated. Unfortunate result but didn't seem overly malicious per my viewing.
 

johnmd20

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He got the 5 and a game because the player got a head injury as a result of an infraction, so the ref's hands are tied there.

That said, it seems more like Niskanen was bracing for Crosby running into him and then Crosby lost balance or whatever and came in lower than he anticipated. Unfortunate result but didn't seem overly malicious per my viewing.
He crosschecked him right in the head, and he finished the crosscheck check. If he was just reacting to Crosby coming towards him, he would have dropped a hand off of his stick for extra leverage and protection. And he wouldn't have followed through. When you're bracing yourself, you don't push your arms out, you hold them out and then let them come to you on impact.

The hit was very dirty.
 

kenneycb

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No he wouldn't. He would keep two hands on his stick and body him up in the chest because that will stop Crosby's momentum and there is less of a chance of you getting bowled over in front of the net, which is more likely to happen if you drop one hand off your stick. You also want to keep two hands on your stick in order to make any plays on the puck in that area.

It's a reactionary move and he finished it because he was expecting to hit the chest instead of the head, which is momentum carrying through. Dropping two hands off the stick for a defenseman right in front of the net is not recommended in traffic.
 

McDrew

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No hearing for Niskanen. Pens didn't update Crosby's condition.

Meanwhile, they're handling things well down in Pittsburgh. This has been making the rounds today...

http://www.upgruv.com/ovechkin-niskanen-crosby-injury-nhl-2388421629.html?utm_source=mobileapps_ios

I bet this guy helped nominate Cooke for the Masterton.
The teams themselves nominate the players, so it was the Penguins' doing, not his, but he was the Penguins beat writer at the time of Cooke's nomination.

Edit:
The hockey world was damaged Monday night when the only hockey player most Americans know...
So he's getting offended on behalf of people that don't follow hockey, then arguing that Sidney Crosby should be held to a different set of protections than every other player because he's the "face" of hockey.

This guy gets paid for this steaming pile of horse shit?
 
Last edited:

Greg29fan

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The teams themselves nominate the players, so it was the Penguins' doing, not his, but he was the Penguins beat writer at the time of Cooke's nomination.
Nope, each PHWA chapter for the 30 teams select a nominee from the club.
 

McDrew

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Wikipedia has it as
The winner is selected by a poll of the Professional Hockey Writers' Association after each team nominates one player in competition.
However, this yahoo article has this
The Professional Hockey Writers’ Association announced each chapter’s nominees for the Bill Masterton Memorial Trophy, annually given to the player “who best exemplifies the qualities of perseverance, sportsmanship, and dedication to hockey.”
I'll trust the latter then.

In that case, yes, he was absolutely involved in the Cooke Nomination.
 

Greg29fan

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Rossi is a cartoon character who nobody takes seriously. The Steigerwald of the print set.
 

TSC

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He crosschecked him right in the head, and he finished the crosscheck check. If he was just reacting to Crosby coming towards him, he would have dropped a hand off of his stick for extra leverage and protection. And he wouldn't have followed through. When you're bracing yourself, you don't push your arms out, you hold them out and then let them come to you on impact.

The hit was very dirty.
Kenny nailed this for the most part, but I'll follow up.

what Niskanen did is what 99% of hockey players will do when bracing for impact, pulling in and then following through to counter the force and attempt to negate the impact.

It's unfortunate that the follow through hit Crosby in the head. Had Crosby not dropped down Niskanen hits him in the arm/back and there's probably not even a call. It's a play that happens 10-15 times a game. It looked bad because of who it was, who got hit, and where, but not because of the hit itself.
 

cshea

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The Ovechkin slash was the play that should've been penalized. That set off the chain of events. Ovechkin wasn't trying to McSorely Crosby, but he was beat on the play and tried to whack Crosby to prevent a scoring chance. He whacked him up high and that should've been a penalty. The whack knocks Crosby off balance and tumbling into Niskanen who reacted. I don't really have an issue with Niskanen getting penalized on the ice, the officials are always going to act on the result in cases like this.
 

Greg29fan

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It wasn't the slash that knocked him off balance; it was the slewfoot he gave him right after.
 

cshea

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Crosby diagnosed with a concussion. Out for game four tomorrow, day-to-day after that.

Not sure if the whole miss a week concussion protocol thing still exists, but if so, he'd only be eligible to return for game 7. I believe you need to sit out a week at a minimum.
 

johnmd20

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Kenny nailed this for the most part, but I'll follow up.

what Niskanen did is what 99% of hockey players will do when bracing for impact, pulling in and then following through to counter the force and attempt to negate the impact.

It's unfortunate that the follow through hit Crosby in the head. Had Crosby not dropped down Niskanen hits him in the arm/back and there's probably not even a call. It's a play that happens 10-15 times a game. It looked bad because of who it was, who got hit, and where, but not because of the hit itself.
I've played hockey for 15 years, including in college. I was never in a situation where I was defending myself from impact with both hands on the stick, using the stick to defend with a hard cross check. You use a cross check when you want to deliver punishment, not when you're in a defensive posture.

It was a cheap and opportunistic hit, in my opinion. Just to note, I despise the Penguins and Crosby. I'm not a fan of them in any way.
 

kenneycb

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Not to get into a dick measuring contest but I've played for 20+ years as a defenseman, including college (high level club hockey...not the big boy shit unfortunately). I fully stand by my (and TSC's) interpretation of the play.
 

TFP

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A 2 handed crosscheck bracing for impact happens literally 10+ times a game in front the net like this at all levels of hockey. 99% of the time it hits the opponent's ribs/arms/body as intended and no one is worse for the wear. Crosby fell at the last second and this one hit his head, which sucks.

kenneycb and TSC have the right of it here.
 

catomatic

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Not to get into a dick measuring contest but I've played for 20+ years as a defenseman, including college (high level club hockey...not the big boy shit unfortunately). I fully stand by my (and TSC's) interpretation of the play.
I have virtually an identical hockey profile (+ a few years, maybe) to Kenney—College DII Club/JV, ISL and continuing Beer League here in NYC. I play D 85% of the time. I concur 100% with Kenney's/TSC's/TFP's assessment of the hit. It's obviously an unfortunate play but I feel pretty strongly that efforts to demonize Niskanen are misplaced.
 

Greg29fan

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I don't think he meant to crosscheck him in the head but I think he saw an opportunity to crosscheck him somewhere vulnerable like he did in games one and two and did so.

Ovechkin's stuff prior to that is much, much more heinous.
 

kenneycb

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Where exactly was the vulnerable part he was going to hit? His shoulder pads? He had no access and wasn't going to get access to the ribs and you generally only do the crosscheck on the back when the player is in front of the net and stationary. Hitting the wrists/forearms seems more productive with a slash and he didn't have a driving down motion that was perpendicular to the ice, so I don't buy that either. Unless he was going for the neck, I don't buy the vulnerable part. Slow motion makes a lot of thinks look more intentional.

Agree on the Ovechkin slash. Regarding the slewfoot you mentioned above, that was just Ovechkin randomly skating into Crosby's skate while making no contact with Crosby's front. If it was a slewfoot Crosby might still have a concussion but it would've been from nailing his head on the ice instead of getting hit in the head with a stick.
 

TFP

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If you guys want to see crosschecks to vulnerable spots, see what Hornqvist was doing out front right before Malkin's goal. This happens all the time in front of the net.
 

TFP

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Pittsburgh is out their best forward, defenseman, and goalie and are still up 3-1 on the Presidents Cup winning team. Impressive effort from them.
 

Greg29fan

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Pittsburgh is out their best forward, defenseman, and goalie and are still up 3-1 on the Presidents Cup winning team. Impressive effort from them.
and that's why I don't want to hear a peep from NBCSN or any of the hockey media about Bonino.

The Penguins don't have Letang, who drives their entire transition game from the back end, Murray, who won the Cup last year with brilliance (although MAF has been out of his mind), and the best player in the game. Add into that Hornqvist has been hurt blocking shots in two games and Hagelin looks like he's at maybe 75%.

They should have swept Pittsburgh and scored 5 goals each game. It's on them, not the officials and not Bonino.
 

TFP

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and that's why I don't want to hear a peep from NBCSN or any of the hockey media about Bonino.

The Penguins don't have Letang, who drives their entire transition game from the back end, Murray, who won the Cup last year with brilliance (although MAF has been out of his mind), and the best player in the game. Add into that Hornqvist has been hurt blocking shots in two games and Hagelin looks like he's at maybe 75%.

They should have swept Pittsburgh and scored 5 goals each game. It's on them, not the officials and not Bonino.
I mean the officials blatantly missed that call but it's not even close to the reason that the series is where it stands.
 

Greg29fan

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They missed a four-minute high stick against Guentzel a few minutes before that - it always evens out.