The Playoff Picture

[vic]

ESPN has their "current playoff match-ups" page up and running (it's probably been there for a while, I just noticed it today)

I wonder who they consider a "Quality Team" that the Canucks face- ANA??? I guess we'll know tomorrow...

http://espn.go.com/nhl/playoffs/matchups

[Blob Mckenzie]

The only Pacific team that worries me as a Canucks fan in the 1st round is the Kings and even they don't because they employ a young unproven Russian , an obese Canadian Olympian who has little respect for the game ,a soft headed slow footed Islander and an overacheiver as the nuts of their blueline.

The Kings with Quick in goal , Carter, Kopitar, Richards and Brown could make life miserable for a round or two but at the end of the day they will not make it out of the 2nd round. Some nice pieces there but that blueline and lack of quickness will be their undoing.

[coco_canuck]

The Kings with Quick in goal , Carter, Kopitar, Richards and Brown could make life miserable for a round or two but at the end of the day they will not make it out of the 2nd round. Some nice pieces there but that blueline and lack of quickness will be their undoing.

And their lack of foot speed is spread throughout their roster.

Scuderi and Mitchell are solid players in their own right, but when both are in your top 4, your D is slooowww, and to top it off, Greene is on the 3rd pair.

Then you have Penner up front, who is a joke.

So, 4 key players, spread through the line-up, playing between 13-22 minutes each.

It's especially bad when players like Kopitar, Carter and Brown, who are good and can skate, are not burners.

There are lots of good pieces on that team, but Lombardi needs to get away from his conservative approach and embrace the speed of today's game. If he adds good supplementary players with speed, especially another top 4 D to bump Scuderi to the 3rd pair, and moves Greene for a more mobile depth defenceman, then the Kings can be a real dangerous team.

Otherwise, like Blob said, they might win a round against the right opponent, but against a top end team with speed like Van, it'll be over in 5, maybe 6 at most.

[vic]

There are only two teams in the West that scare me - Detroit AND Nashville.

Luckily, it looks like they will play each other in the 1st round so really there is one team that scares me Detroit OR Nashville

[porp]

I believe Canucks still have arbitration rights on Schneider, so he can't be offersheeted (offered a sheet?)

But I hate to say it Porp, but a 1st, 2nd and 3rd is a decent return for Schneider, especially coming from a "low cap" team with high picks.

(From http://www.canuckscorner.com/forums/viewtopic.php?f=2&t=9197&start=30 another thread)

So is a 1st, 2nd, and a 3rd still a decent return for Schneider? How about for Luongo?

I really hope AV pre-schedules starting Cory for at least one game per round. Then again, last minute decisions for the starter could be as strategically effective as splitting the Sedins up to mess with the other team's game plan.

Needless to say, how Cory performs in the playoffs will seriously affect his perceived value.

[Meds]

There are only two teams in the West that scare me - Detroit AND Nashville.

Luckily, it looks like they will play each other in the 1st round so really there is one team that scares me Detroit OR Nashville

Even though we beat St. Louis 2-0 in our last meeting, outside of our 4-0 sweep in the opening round a few years back, the Blues have always given us fits.....and we all saw what happened 2 years ago when Halak got hot in the playoffs for Montreal.

[porp]

the Blues have always given us fits.....

I agree; would not like to see this team up against a not-beat-up Blues or the Stars team in the first round. Any other team from the West, I'm not worried about, although a series against the Preds would likely turn out to be another grind-ey injury-producing snoozefest.

[Meds]

the Blues have always given us fits.....

I agree; would not like to see this team up against a not-beat-up Blues or the Stars team in the first round. Any other team from the West, I'm not worried about, although a series against the Preds would likely turn out to be another grind-ey injury-producing snoozefest.

The only teams that don't give me cause for concern are San Jose, Dallas, Phoenix, and Chicago. Nashville, St. Louis, LA, and Detroit are not going to be picnics.

Nashville can shut any team down with their defensive system and goaltending. They have also added a bit of offense going into the playoffs.

St. Louis has really good goaltending this year as well as being the young team who don't fully comprehend the pressure.

LA is only a threat because of Quick. If he heats up it could be like facing Tim Thomas all over again. They may lack speed, but they have skill and some good leadership in Richards as well as scoring touches in Carter, Williams, and Kopitar. They also have size and toughness in their top 6.

Detroit is Detroit. The Red Wing's can always get it done, they simply live in everyone's heads.

[Farhan Lalji]

The only teams that don't give me cause for concern are San Jose, Dallas, Phoenix, and Chicago. Nashville, St. Louis, LA, and Detroit are not going to be picnics.

I almost agree with you completely except that I'd also include San Jose in the "danger" list. As much as they've struggled this year, they are still a big and mean team that can pick a team apart offensively if they're on. Although we beat them in 5 last year, they banged us up quite heavily (although we did it to them as well).

San Jose's domination of Dallas these past few games also indicates to me that the Sharks will be a dangerous 1st round opponent. Unlike previous years, there won't be as much pressure on the Sharks and so the fear of "choking" may not be as prevalent.

St. Louis will be dangerous, but they don't scare me too much. I think if the Canucks play them, we would beat them in a similar manner to how we beat Nashville last year.

[Meds]

The only teams that don't give me cause for concern are San Jose, Dallas, Phoenix, and Chicago. Nashville, St. Louis, LA, and Detroit are not going to be picnics.

I almost agree with you completely except that I'd also include San Jose in the "danger" list. As much as they've struggled this year, they are still a big and mean team that can pick a team apart offensively if they're on. Although we beat them in 5 last year, they banged us up quite heavily (although we did it to them as well).

San Jose's domination of Dallas these past few games also indicates to me that the Sharks will be a dangerous 1st round opponent. Unlike previous years, there won't be as much pressure on the Sharks and so the fear of "choking" may not be as prevalent.

St. Louis will be dangerous, but they don't scare me too much. I think if the Canucks play them, we would beat them in a similar manner to how we beat Nashville last year.

Normally I'd agree with you, but the Canucks live in the Sharks' collective head. Thornton can't play a shift against the Sedin's or Kesler without losing his cool when the Canucks have the puck or after a whistle. Niemi doesn't track the puck well at all, though he can heat up and get very lucky, but go high and you'll see alot of goals. They aren't exactly toothless, but I think these Sharks have lost much of their bite. This is a team that the Canucks could sweep if they put the effort in for 60 minutes 4 games in a row.

In all honesty, this series will depend on Luongo and Niemi. If Luongo tanks and Niemi flukes out, the Canucks will be lucky to win in 7. Vigneault's leash on Louie will be telling as well.

[mathonwy]

We got the Sharks. Niemi is HIGHLY vulnerable and the twins are in Thornton's head. The Sharks have had major problems all year and it's not going to magically fix itself in the playoffs.

Dallas, I think is done.

LA, is dysfunctional. The Jeff Carter experiment is just that, still an experiment. They are still have problems scoring goals and all of the LA forwards are having an underwhelming season. The fact that they still haven't clinched a playoff spot tells you something. All is not well in LA.

Phoenix is a bit tough to gauge because Mike Smith is having a hell of a season. They may have a hard time scoring but they can be opportunistic and Mike Smith is an X factor. I think Nucks skill and speed will ultimately prevail but I can see Mike Smith stealing a few games.

Nashville is going to be a very very tough out. Their forwards have speed, grit and skill, their blue line has a fuck load of toughness and Rinne is the real deal. This'll go to 7 and it'll be a coin toss on who wins. Adding a legit top 3/6 forward in Radulov without giving up anything is huge.

Detroit has had a pretty interesting season. Mediocre at the beginning and getting very good toward the end. However, I think the Nucks have more depth than the Wings. Both Lidstrom and Holmstrom are old men and our boys have younger legs. Can't take em lightly though as Filppula and Helm have had breakout seasons.

The Hawks will be a very emotional and bloody series. Duncan Keith really took the rivalry to the next level with that brutal elbow to Dank's head. This series will be where Canucks fans will be happy that we have Zackian. I think we'll disembowel the Hawks in 4 or 5 but casualties may be suffered.

The Blues.... I have no idea. I think we can outskill them but they got some big boys that can hurt people over on that team. Can our blue line stay healthy in a 7 game series against Oshie, Arnott, Backes, Steen and Stewart? I hope so.

[vic]

ESPN still saying the Canucks play 1 Quality team - I guess they are referring to Calgary

[ESQ]

I believe Canucks still have arbitration rights on Schneider, so he can't be offersheeted (offered a sheet?)

But I hate to say it Porp, but a 1st, 2nd and 3rd is a decent return for Schneider, especially coming from a "low cap" team with high picks.

(From http://www.canuckscorner.com/forums/viewtopic.php?f=2&t=9197&start=30 another thread)

So is a 1st, 2nd, and a 3rd still a decent return for Schneider? How about for Luongo?

I really hope AV pre-schedules starting Cory for at least one game per round. Then again, last minute decisions for the starter could be as strategically effective as splitting the Sedins up to mess with the other team's game plan.

Needless to say, how Cory performs in the playoffs will seriously affect his perceived value.

I agree with you on starting Cory at least once per series, because this year we've usually seen Luongo play well after Schneider starts, whereas in years past he would be out of his "rhythm" whenever the backup started and it would take a couple games to get it back.

As for the return on Schneider, if he starts and carries us all the way, his value will go up to around what Halak got, which is Lars Eller (decent prospect) and a minor leaguer. I'd take a 1st, 2nd, and 3rd over that myself.

As for Luongo, there is no market comparable for trading that calibre of goalie, other than the last time he was traded for a young top4 D, a former superstar power forward, and a backup goalie. I don't think he fetch that kind of return today, but you would get either a top6 forward or top3 D plus change.

[Island Nucklehead]

Detroit really needs to get into fourth. They won't win a series @ Nashville, imo. Only Columbus, Edmonton, and Anaheim in the West have a worse road record than Detroit. St Louis is another team vulnerable on the road (18-16-6). Both are totally dominant at home.

The Canucks have the 4th best home, and the best road record in the West.

[wafflecombine]

Detroit beat the Blues last night so our lead in the west openned up a bit. Also pushed Detroit up the standings.

amazingly tight this year. Teams sliding all over the place every night.