2025-2026 NHL Offseason

CROJAM95

Still can’t get over the Bruins

pure magic all year, to have the coach you fired raise the cup vs the team that knocked you out in 1st rd? Ouch

congrats to Vegas

Johnny Abruzzo

Miami pulled the Philly - lose two championships at once.

MayDay10

Disappointed Vegas won with their cap circumvention trick, and Jack Eichel is the prince of turds.  

But its nice to be in the offseason. 

mrussel1

Wobbie said:

mrussel1 said:

eeriepadave said:

Golden Knights game to lose.  they are kicking some bit and playing extremely well tonight.

Vegas is a solid team, not some all timer of a squad.  Panthers have just been awful.  

who are the “all timers”? are we talking teams with crosbys, ovechkins, gretzkys? obviously, any team with an all time talent is going to be memorable. I won’t argue vegas is in any way an all time squad….I seriously doubt they’ll win another cup with this squad….it’s just too hard and hockey can be so random….that said, they’re good.

#1 priority is to get rid of shitty goal tender and all around turd, robin lehner.

You're focused on Vegas.  I'm not saying they aren't/weren't good in this run.  They were.  Hill was great.  I'm more making a point that the Panthers failed to compete, particularly last night.  Where was Barkov and Verhaeghe all series?  Where was the PP?  

tempo_n_groove

Congrats Vegas.  Wow.

Rangers got a coach that should stir up the franchise and right that ship.

Rygar

Poncier said:

Poncier said:

Panthers in 6.
Tkachuk Conn-Smythe winner.

Didn't nail this one.

But you nailed owning up to it.

Wobbie

MayDay10 said:

Disappointed Vegas won with their cap circumvention trick, and Jack Eichel is the prince of turds.  

But it’s nice to be in the offseason. 

I’m not sure that’s really fair..,it’s just how it worked out…stone needed the back surgery and went on the disabled list…those are the rules. It’s not like it was some phony surgery.

and you’re just mad Buffalo fucked up the eichel situation

1ThoughtKnown

*yawn* that was even less interesting than I thought. 

Time for the draft, free agency. Loony season! 

Wobbie

1ThoughtKnown said:

*yawn* that was even less interesting than I thought. 

says the canadian fan.

1ThoughtKnown

Wobbie said:

1ThoughtKnown said:

*yawn* that was even less interesting than I thought. 

says the canadian fan.

Says the hockey fan. There have been great finals involving two US teams, like Pgh-Det (x2), Chi-Phi, StL-Bos
This wasn’t one of them. 

F Me In The Brain

One team was a Cup Winner-fraud, when it came down to it.
Got their shit pushed in.
(And f that ball of crap Tk, he deserved to go out like that.)

Johnny Abruzzo

Definitely one of the most non-competitive Finals I can remember, up there with Lindros & the Flyers getting destroyed by the Soviet Red Army in 1997.

mrussel1

Johnny Abruzzo said:

Definitely one of the most non-competitive Finals I can remember, up there with Lindros & the Flyers getting destroyed by the Soviet Red Army in 1997.

I agree, it sucked.  And there was no reason for that to happen.  It's like Florida just folded early and often.  This is hockey, you can win any game with goaltending and effort.  I'd love to find the blocked shots stats.  I looked and couldn't find them.  But it seemed like Vegas had bodies everywhere and FL didn't.  And how do you give up 5, 7 and 9 goals in a game?  WTF!  

HughFreakingDillon

mrussel1 said:

Johnny Abruzzo said:

Definitely one of the most non-competitive Finals I can remember, up there with Lindros & the Flyers getting destroyed by the Soviet Red Army in 1997.

I agree, it sucked.  And there was no reason for that to happen.  It's like Florida just folded early and often.  This is hockey, you can win any game with goaltending and effort.  I'd love to find the blocked shots stats.  I looked and couldn't find them.  But it seemed like Vegas had bodies everywhere and FL didn't.  And how do you give up 5, 7 and 9 goals in a game?  WTF!  

I didn't even watch, but I saw a quick GIF of the end of the series and thought "was that a NINE??". 

MayDay10

I did not watch one minute of the finals.  
I don't really care about either team or franchise, although I did want Vegas to lose.  I didnt like the fact that the hot team winning with mojo and smoke and mirrors, along with a hot goalie had such a long layoff.  I suspected they would revert back to looking like a #8 seed.  They had such a tough road to go through Boston, Toronto, and Carolina, probably 3 of the league's top 4 teams (when Colorado is healthy).  I didnt realize how fundamentally injured some key players were.

From the get-go, the series wasnt really competitive, which led to me (and many others) just tuning it out. 

MayDay10

Wobbie said:

MayDay10 said:

Disappointed Vegas won with their cap circumvention trick, and Jack Eichel is the prince of turds.  

But it’s nice to be in the offseason. 

and you’re just mad Buffalo fucked up the eichel situation

I am mad at Sabres' management for a lot of things.  Hopefully they have it turned around now.  I am not upset with the Eichel thing.  Eichel was always an entitled turd, even in youth/juniors, right along through college.  
He came here #2 overall and the Sabres tried to immediately build a team around him.  They got Gionta and Gorges to teach him how to be a leader/man.  Unfortunately, they also got Evander Kane.  I wonder who the 18-19 year old frat boy millionaire is going to follow... the boring married guys or the guy who snorts coke, skips practice to take a helicopter to NBA All-star games.  OReilly took the right path though.  Eventually he had enough of Eichel though.

So the Sabres tried for years to do everything they can to make Eichel happy.  They fired/hired coaches, GMs, made him captain, etc.  He was a terrible captain.  The team made him unavailable after the Sabres lost.   He would visibly loaf in the middle of games, he would show up his teammates by throwing his head and arms back if someone made a mistake.  His coke problem was well documented around town.  I know a few prominent people in local media, and behind the scenes, sports reporters laughed and made fun of him, and gave him the nickname 'jack-nape'.  They still tried to help kiss his ass with their print and news casts.  I have heard so many anecdotes of Eichel being a douchebag in public, including to kids.  

Eichel asked for a trade privately around the time of covid.  Then tried to create the whole surgery drama to demand a trade, and also tried to play the media.  His original agent acted like a fool and undermined both sides and he ended up firing him for a more professional guy who eventually told Eichel to shut the fuck up.  

He gets booed last year in Buffalo, they lose, and then postgame, he shits on the fans who supported him and sold out the building for a last place team for 7 years like a baby.

He isn't an easy guy to root for.  He embodies every villain from 80s movies.



He ended up going to the one situation that wasnt going to see his career spiral into obscurity.  He needed to walk into a team where he isnt 'the guy'.  There is an established leadership core in Pietrangelo and Stone.  The team was already really good and successful.  He is free to sneak off and snort coke whenever he pleases because it's Vegas.  


edit:  He is also a huge Trumper and previously had to delete his social media accounts after putting his immense ignorance on display.

Wobbie

MayDay10 said:

I did not watch one minute of the finals.  
I don't really care about either team or franchise, although I did want Vegas to lose.  I didnt like the fact that the hot team winning with mojo and smoke and mirrors, along with a hot goalie had such a long layoff.  I suspected they would revert back to looking like a #8 seed.  They had such a tough road to go through Boston, Toronto, and Carolina, probably 3 of the league's top 4 teams (when Colorado is healthy).  

so, VGK was not even a top 4 team, in your opinion?

Wobbie

mrussel1 said:

Johnny Abruzzo said:

Definitely one of the most non-competitive Finals I can remember, up there with Lindros & the Flyers getting destroyed by the Soviet Red Army in 1997.

I agree, it sucked.  And there was no reason for that to happen.  It's like Florida just folded early and often.  This is hockey, you can win any game with goaltending and effort.  I'd love to find the blocked shots stats.  I looked and couldn't find them.  But it seemed like Vegas had bodies everywhere and FL didn't.  And how do you give up 5, 7 and 9 goals in a game?  WTF!  

effort and goaltending WERE the keys. VGK’s effort helped Hill and carolina’s lack of effort often hung bobrovsky out to dry.

Johnny Abruzzo

Wobbie said:

 and carolina’s lack of effort often hung bobrovsky out to dry.

Carolina has the Panthers right?

MayDay10

Wobbie said:

MayDay10 said:

I did not watch one minute of the finals.  
I don't really care about either team or franchise, although I did want Vegas to lose.  I didnt like the fact that the hot team winning with mojo and smoke and mirrors, along with a hot goalie had such a long layoff.  I suspected they would revert back to looking like a #8 seed.  They had such a tough road to go through Boston, Toronto, and Carolina, probably 3 of the league's top 4 teams (when Colorado is healthy).  

so, VGK was not even a top 4 team, in your opinion?

I dont think I would rank them ahead of any of the 4 mentioned, although knocking on the door.  If Adin Hill figured it out, wasnt just hot, and is a .935/2.15 goalie, then absolutely.

It isnt a sizzling hot take or anything.  I think bookmakers have the 2024 Stanley Cup odds up and Vegas is like the 8th best odds.