NHL: 2018-2019 Season

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May I interest you GTPlaneteers in some hockey? Good! May I interest you in these games tonight? Like...

* OTT Senators at TOR Maple Leafs
* BOS Bruins at NYR Rangers (NBCSN Wednesday Night Hockey)

So we got three Original Six teams and two games played in two countries tonight. Canadian pride is on the line between in-province rivals Ottawa and Toronto. Meanwhile in the United States, we got two of the NHL's Original Six squaring off in the bright lights of New York City. There may only be two games, but these are two interesting matches for sure. So be sure to enjoy these games to the max should you be watching. Your "Hump Day" of hockey tonight is ready for you to enjoy.
 
I honestly haven't seen much hockey lately. However, there are three games on the slate for this Monday night. And here they are:

* LA Kings at WAS Capitals
* PIT Penguins at PHI Flyers
* SJ Sharks at VAN Canucks

Random team musings...

* This past weekend, Anaheim fired their head coach as the Ducks have currently lost seven straight games.

* Central talk. Even though Chicago has won seven straight, they are still dead last in the Central. St. Louis has won six straight and are 4th in the Central. If you're a Wild fan, Minnesota is 5th currently in the Central.

* It's been a tough season for the Detroit Red Wings. Hockeytown is next-to-last in the Atlantic ahead of Ottawa.

* There is a chance Buffalo could possibly make the top 3 in the Atlantic (currently 5th in that Division), but I could realistically see Buffalo get a Wild Card berth in the East. However, it's going to be VERY close for them to do so.

* Remember when Vegas had that furious run last season? Well, the Golden Knights are 3rd in the Pacific. So they'd make the playoffs if they began today. Ahead of Vegas are San José (2nd) and Calgary (leading).


I hope you all are enjoying this season of NHL hockey. Good luck to your favorite teams.
 
Happy Valentine's Day... Eve! There won't be much loving on this Wednesday night when these games are on the card:

* EDM Oilers at PIT Penguins (NBCSN Wednesday Night Hockey)
* VAN Canucks at ANA Ducks

Hump Day hockey. Enjoy it.
 
I saw bits and pieces of games this past Sunday. What I really got to see yesterday was a YouTube video of the infamous brawl between the Detroit Red Wings and Colorado Avalanche back in 1997. I just really wonder how much more different it was then when Detroit was in the Western Conference as opposed to the Eastern Conference. Hockeytown has been on the skids for most of the season. I am hoping the Red Wings can return to their baller form within a few seasons.


I hope your favorite teams are doing well!
 
If hockey and Wednesday nights are your thing, then you're in luck with this Wednesday night of hockey. Check out the lineup of games this time around:

* CHI Blackhawks at DET Red Wings (NBCSN Wednesday Night Hockey)
* WPG Jets at COL Avalanche
* NYI Islanders at CGY Flames
* BOS Bruins at VGK Golden Knights (NBCSN Wednesday Night Hockey)

So three of the NHL's Original Six will be in action, and one game is even all Original Six (CHI at DET). Hockeytown has had little to celebrate in this rough season, but they do hope their beloved team can take down the Blackhawks on national television.


Should you be watching or following, enjoy tonight's games, GTPlanet.
 
Later tonight, it's the battle for the Keystone State. It will be the Pittsburgh Penguins taking on the Philadelphia Flyers outdoors at Lincoln Financial Field in Philadelphia. PIT is 4th in the Metropolitan, and PHI is 6th in the Metropolitan.

Games that wrapped up as of this post are as follows:

* Samurai8juice's Buffalo Sabres whacked the Washington Capitals 5-2 in Buffalo.

* The New York Rangers handled the New Jersey Devils at home 5-2.


Enjoy your NHL hockey, folks!
 
This is the final Wednesday of February 2019. In so, this is what your Wednesday night of hockey looks like this time around:

* CGY Flames at NJ Devils
* EDM Oilers at TOR Maple Leafs
* TB Lightning at NYR Rangers (NBCSN Wednesday Night Hockey)
* VAN Canucks at COL Avalanche
* CHI Blackhawks at ANA Ducks (NBCSN Wednesday Night Hockey)

So... you will be pretty busy! Two pretty good games will be on National TV with the NBC Sports Network. Go enjoy some hockey tonight!
 
The quest for Lord Stanley's lovely trophy winds its way into March now. The struggle is real to play for the Stanley Cup. Here is a rundown of how teams are doing so far:

(Before I begin, I apologize for any missed or incorrect data. Remember- I am human, and is therefore prone to mistakes)


--- EASTERN CONFERENCE ---
ATLANTIC: Tampa Bay (49-12-4; 102 pts.), BOS (38-17-9; 85 pts.), TOR (39-21-4; 82 pts.), MON (34-23-7; 75 pts.), FLA (28-25-10; 66 pts.), BUF (29-26-8; 66 pts.), DET (23-32-9; 55 pts.), OTT (22-37-5; 49 pts.)

METROPOLITAN: New York Islanders (37-19-7; 81 pts.), WAS (36-21-7; 79 pts.), CBJ 36-24-6; 75 pts.), CAR (34-23-6; 74 pts.), PIT (33-22-8; 74 pts.), PHI (30-26-8; 68 pts.), NYR (27-26-10; 64 pts.), NJ (25-31-8; 58 pts.)

CURRENT EAST WILD CARD: Montreal and Carolina


--- WESTERN CONFERENCE ---
CENTRAL: Nashville (37-24-5; 79 pts.), WPG (37-22-4; 78 pts.), STL (34-23-6; 74 pts.), DAL (32-27-5; 69 pts.), MIN (31-27-6; 68 pts.), COL (28-24-12; 68 pts.), CHI (27-28-9; 63 pts.)

PACIFIC: Calgary (41-16-7; 89 pts.), SJ (37-19-8; 82 pts.), VGK (34-26-5; 73 pts.), ARI (31-28-5; 67 pts.), VAN (27-29-9; 63 pts.), EDM (27-30-7; 61 pts.), ANA (24-31-9; 57 pts.), LA (23-33-8; 54 pts.)

CURRENT WEST WILD CARD: Dallas and Minnesota


Since nothing has been clinched as of right now, there are still plenty of opportunities to emerge and improve playoff positioning. So keep on fighting to play for the Championship this season! Or... play to improve your Draft status if completely out of it.

Good luck to all of your favorite teams. Enjoy the rest of the season.
 
The Bruins beat the Lightning 4-1, which was nice. :D We’re obviously not going to catch them in the standings, but we’re still in a good spot and hopefully we can grab second in the Atlantic, although it’s going to be super competitive.
 
Spare some thoughts in loving memory of Ted Lindsay, who died today at the age of 93. The hockey Hall of Famer was a four-time Stanley Cup champion and a big part of the history of the Detroit Red Wings. He will perhaps best be known for the routine of the postseason champions getting out on the ice and hoisting the Stanley Cup into the air after winning it. My condolences go out in loving memory of Ted Lindsay and all whom have known and loved him.
 
How about some hockey tonight? If you believe in the shield- the NHL shield, then here are the matches slated for tonight for your enjoyment:

* WAS Capitals at PHI Flyers (NBCSN Wednesday Night Hockey)
* TOR Maple Leafs at VAN Canucks
* STL Blues at ANA Ducks (NBCSN Wednesday Night Hockey)
* CGY Flames at VGK Golden Knights

Before I close this post, I want to take a moment to congratulate Barry Trotz on getting his 800th win as coach. B. Trotz, the coach of the New York Islanders, is the fourth-ever coach in NHL history to surpass 800 wins. The Islanders defeated the Ottawa Senators at home 5-4 in a Shootout. The Senators currently has the league's worst record at (23-38-6; 52 pts.).

What teams are trending in the right direction? The WRONG direction? Both the Washington Capitals and the Vegas Golden Knights have won four straight games. Both teams play tonight. Meanwhile, Detroit has the longest losing streak, having lost eight straight games. So not very happy times for Hockeytown, as has been the case most of this season.


I hope you enjoy tonight's games. Good luck to all of your favorite teams.
 
The Sabres are dead. They have to win out to have any remote chance, but even then there's a good chance they still miss out by a couple points.
 
Tonight is the final Wednesday Night Hockey while it is Winter. Next Wednesday is the official start of Spring here in the Northern Hemisphere. Want to know what the NHL has on tap tonight? Here is what your Wednesday night of hockey looks like this time around:

* CHI Blackhawks at TOR Maple Leafs (NBCSN Wednesday Night Hockey)
* NJ Devils at EDM Oilers (NBCSN Wednesday Night Hockey)
* NYR Rangers at VAN Canucks

So we got three of the NHL's Original Six playing tonight, two of them playing against each other (CHI and TOR). Three American teams, three Canadian teams. All of these games are somehow too good for the United States, so Canada will get plenty of loving tonight.


Enjoy some hockey tonight!
 
Hawk-eeh.

As the regular season winds down, a handful of matches are to come in the National Hockey League tonight. Seven games are on today. Two of today's seven games will be on NBCSN. Of those, it's the Philadelphia Flyers at the Pittsburgh Penguins, and then the Edmonton Oilers will go meet the Vegas Golden Knights. Tampa Bay is still the only team to have clinched a Playoff berth so far.


Enjoy your hockey on this St. Patrick's Day. By the way, Happy St. Patrick's Day!
 
Spring has sprung! As the regular season winds down, it is the first Spring Wednesday of NHL hockey. March Madness may have begun in college basketball, but there is still plenty of madness in the NHL to be had. Are you ready for tonight's matches? If you are, this is what's on tap this Wednesday night:

* TOR Maple Leafs at BUF Sabres
* TB Lightning at WAS Capitals (NBCSN Wednesday Night Hockey)
* OTT Senators at VAN Canucks
* WPG Jets at ANA Ducks (NBCSN Wednesday Night Hockey)

Should be a fun night!


A few teams have clinched Playoff berths. So far, these teams have a chance at winning the Stanley Cup:

LEGEND:
! = clinched division
!! = home advantage

--- Who's IN! - Eastern Conference ---
* Tampa Bay!!
* ...2nd ATL...
* ...3rd ATL...
* ...1st MET...
* ...2nd MET...
* ...3rd MET...
* ...EAST Wild Card 1...
* ...EAST Wild Card 2...

--- Who's IN! - Western Conference ---
* ...1st CEN...
* ...2nd CEN...
* ...3rd CEN...
* Calgary
* San José
* ...3rd PAC...
* ...WEST Wild Card 1...
* ...WEST Wild Card 2...

Plenty more hockey to be played for these positions to be filled out. Keep making those playoff pushes if your team(s) still have a chance!


Good luck to all of your favorite teams.
 
Tonight is the final Wednesday of March 2019, and it is also the penultimate regular season Wednesday night of NHL hockey. So are you wondering how this Wednesday night looks with playoff positioning still at stake, here is what's coming up tonight:

* TOR Maple Leafs at PHI Flyers
* NYR Rangers at BOS Bruins (NBCSN Wednesday Night Hockey)
* DAL Stars at CGY Flames
* VGK Golden Knights at COL Avalanche (NBCSN Wednesday Night Hockey)

How about that? You get some Original Six hockey tonight in Boston on National TV! These all seem like some fine games for your Wednesday night.


Speaking of Playoffs, let's update the team in the Playoffs so far heading into tonight...

--- Who's IN! - Eastern Conference ---
* Tampa Bay!! (division winners and home advantage)
* Boston
* ...3rd Place Atlantic...
* ...1st Place Metropolitan...
* ...2nd Place Metropolitan...
* ...3rd Place Metropolitan...
* ...East Wild Card 1...
* ...East Wild Card 2...

--- Who's IN! - Western Conference ---
* Winnipeg
* Nashville
* ...3rd Place Central...
* Calgary
* San José
* ...3rd Place Pacific...
* ...West Wild Card 1...
* ...West Wild Card 2...

There's still a lot of season left, so don't give up if you still have a chance to make the playoffs!


Have a great Wednesday night!
 
I am sorry for not doing my usual Wednesday post any earlier. Tonight is the final regular season Wednesday night of hockey. Going on or about to go on are the following:

* OTT Senators at NYR Rangers
* STL Blues at CHI Blackhawks (NBCSN Wednesday Night Hockey)
* CGY Flames at ANA Ducks

Enjoy your Wednesday night of hockey! And again, my apologies for not doing this any sooner.
 
Believe it or not... the regular season has ended. That means it's time to put 16 of the teams with great seasons into the Playoffs to win the beautiful Stanley Cup. Who will hoist Lord Stanley's cup this season? It can be any of these teams:

! = division winner
!! = home advantage

--- EASTERN CONFERENCE PLAYOFF TEAMS ---
* Tampa Bay!!
* Boston
* Toronto
* Washington! (defending Champions)
* New York Islanders
* Pittsburgh
* Carolina (East Wild Card 1)
* Columbus (East Wild Card 2)

--- WESTERN CONFERENCE PLAYOFF TEAMS ---
* Nashville!
* Winnipeg
* St. Louis
* Calgary!!
* San José
* Vegas
* Dallas (West Wild Card 1)
* Colorado (West Wild Card 2)


And here are the matchups:

--- WEST ---
(PACIFIC)
* #1 CGY Flames vs. #WC2 COL Avalanche
* #2 SJ Sharks vs. #3 VGK Golden Knights
(CENTRAL)
* #1 NSH Predators vs. #WC1 DAL Stars
* #2 WPG Jets vs. #3 STL Blues

--- EAST ---
(ATLANTIC)
* #1 TB Lightning vs. #WC2 CBJ Blue Jackets
* #2 BOS Bruins vs. #3 TOR Maple Leafs
(METROPOLITAN)
* #1 WAS Capitals vs. #WC1 CAR Hurricanes
* #2 NYI Islanders vs. #3 PIT Penguins

The Stanley Cup Playoffs begin Wednesday. So get those brackets ready! We'll find out who will emerge from both sides of the tournament bracket. Are any of you possible bold enough to pick a Stanley Cup Final... or even pick the league champion for this season?


Congratulations to all of this season's Playoff teams. Good luck to them in pursuit of the Stanley Cup.
 
"There's nothing like playoff hockey."

Ladies and gentlemen, tonight begins the grind towards hoisting the Stanley Cup! Out of the 31 NHL teams, 16 have proven to be the best (or the luckiest). So it is time to determine which team is great enough to become NHL champions of the 2018-2019 season. Preseason was well done. The regular season is done. Now, it is time to determine who will win Lord Stanley's beautiful cup. The defending champions are the Washington Capitals. The team seen as the absolute favorite to win it all is the Tampa Bay Lightning. As we all know, though, ANYTHING can (and will) happen. Let's drop the puck on another Stanley Cup Playoffs!


Good luck to all playoff teams; better luck next season to all who didn't make the playoffs this postseason.
 
VGK signed Russian winger Nikita Gusev to what is essentially a mercenary contract for the playoffs. The 26 year old was the KHLs top point scorer this year.

If the name sounds familiar, it might be from the 2018 Winter Olympics. Gusev, along with Ilya Kovalchuk and Pavel Datsyuk were part of the Gold medalist Russian (or OAR) team and produced several highlight reel plays in the tournament.

Possible we’ll see him in this series but very likely he’ll crack the lineup for the following series if the Knights beat the Sharks.
 
Just like NFL fans believe in the "Madden Curse," some feel there is a curse for winning the Presidents Trophy. Well, that's what is happening to the Tampa Bay Lightning- winners of the 2018-2019 Presidents Trophy. They are down 3-0 in their series to the Columbus Blue Jackets.

Also up 3-0 in their series is the New York Islanders over the Pittsburgh Penguins. So both Tampa Bay and Pittsburgh are hoping they can pull reverse sweeps to save their respective seasons. The defending champion Washington Capitals are up 2-0 over the Carolina Hurricanes. Maybe CAR needs to get serious despite their shenanigans. The only Original Six playoff match is tied 1-1 between Boston and Toronto.

On the West end, we got St. Louis leading Winnipeg and Vegas leading San José, both at 2-1 in their respective series. The series tied 1-1 in the West heading into tonight are between Nashville vs. Dallas and Calgary vs. Colorado.


Games tonight: WAS at CAR, BOS at TOR, NSH at DAL, and CGY at COL.
 
The Tampa Bay Lightning are at the Columbus Blue Jackets tonight in Game 4 of their 1st Round series. If Tampa Bay loses, they will be the first team to win the Presidents Trophy and be swept in their first round series. Teams that have won the Presidents Trophy have been defeated in a 1st Round series. However, a Presidents Trophy winning team has never been swept.

As of right now... ain't looking good for Tampa Bay- down 2-0 after Columbus recently scored with 15:45 left in the 1st Period.


[UPDATE] I meant Game 4, not Game 1.
 
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The Tampa Bay Lightning were first once again this year.... as in the first team to be officially eliminated from the playoffs as they lose 7-3 to the Columbus Blue Jackets and have been swept from the first round.

Joining the Lightning will be the Pittsburgh Penguins who have earned the right to just.... not go anywhere as the New York Islanders sweep their first round series with a 3-1 victory in Pittsburgh.
 
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Yeah, it's sad, Blitz24. The Presidents Trophy curse continues. From 62 wins (tied NHL single season win record)... to being 86ed in the 1st Round. First Presidents Trophy winners to be swept in a First Round series of the Stanley Cup Playoffs. I'm sure the Lightning will do a lot of soul searching this whole off-season. Poking around on Twitter, you know social media was abuzz with something like this happening.

The Tampa Bay Lightning's Twitter feed was basically saying stuff along the lines of, "we know your frustration and anger- we weren't expecting to perform the way we did. Still, thank you for supporting us." So you go from dominating the regular season to doing next to nothing in the postseason. Man... all the sports shows and stuff are going to chew out the 2018-2019 Tampa Bay Lightning like gum.

Meanwhile, Columbus advances to the 2nd Round of the Stanley Cup Playoffs for the first time in franchise history. But again... Tampa Bay and Pittsburgh = DONE.
 
This is why I love hockey more than any other sport.

The Lightning were hockey’s closest thing to the Golden State Warriors this season. Absolute powerhouse. Hands down the best team to exist in the salary cap era and one of the best teams of all time.

No one was picking the Blue Jackets to win this series, let alone sweep them! Testament to the fantastic unpredictability of this great sport.

Historic team. Historic collapse.

As a Wings fan, it’s nice to know we won as many playoff games as the Lightning and Penguins combined this season:sly:
 
From the Tampa Bay Lightning on Facebook and Twitter after getting swept by Columbus:

"We don’t have any words and we know you don’t want to hear them.

We understand your anger, your frustration, your sadness. Everything you’re feeling – we get it.

This isn’t the ending we imagined, and certainly not the one we wanted. Thank you for being there the entire way."
-Tampa Bay Lightning on Facebook and Twitter

This is that "the morning after" moment for the Tampa Bay Lightning in seeing their season come to an end in a sweep. You go from historically baller... to getting swept (by a lesser team, no less) in the 1st Round series of the Stanley Cup Playoffs. This basically leaves the East wide open. Even the defending champion Washington Capitals are still in it.

The Columbus Blue Jackets and the New York Islanders made it to the Conference Semifinals of the Stanley Cup Playoffs. Columbus will get the winner of BOS/TOR (TOR leads series 2-1), and the New York Islanders will get the winner of WAS/CAR (WAS leads series 2-1). Only team in the West with significant progress so far is VGK leading 3-1 over SJ.

Tonight's games: BOS at TOR, NSH at DAL, and CGY at COL.


Enjoy some playoff hockey on this Wednesday (or "Hump Day")!
 
Time for a few NHL musings.


Yeah. I'm sure Yzerman's influence will hopefully lift the Detroit Red Wings back to being a baller franchise and put Hockeytown back on the map. The Detroit Red Wings will come back. That's even if they win the 2nd West Wild Card next season.


1st Round Series so far...
* NSH vs. DAL: tied 2-2
* WPG vs. STL: STL leads 3-2
* CGY vs. COL: COL leads 3-2
* SJ vs. VGK: VGK leads 3-2
* CBJ def. TB: CBJ wins series 4-0
* BOS vs. TOR: tied 2-2
* WAS vs. CAR: tied 2-2
* NYI vs. PIT: NYI wins series 4-0

2nd Round:
* (NSH/DAL winner) vs. (WPG/STL winner)
* (CGY/COL winner) vs. (SJ/VGK winner)
* CBJ vs. (BOS/TOR winner)
* (WAS/CAR winner) vs. NYI

We'll slowly shape out the Semifinal rounds of the Stanley Cup Playoffs.


Last night, I saw a video about the Los Angeles Kings in 2014 reverse-sweeping the San José Sharks. The Sharkies were up 3-0 in their series against the Kings. The Kings ended up winning four straight games to drop the Sharks in the 2014 season. To me, this proves that hockey is perhaps the most unpredictable of the four major American sports. In hockey, home advantage doesn't mean too much in hockey. We all saw Tampa Bay go from historic regular season... to not winning a single game in the 1st Round to Wild Card team Columbus. Now, hockey isn't as unpredictable as baseball can be, but hockey is quite an interesting sport. Pretty much proving the point our dylpro made earlier in this thread.


That is all. Enjoy the rest of the playoffs!
 
* cue WipEout *

CONTENDERS ELIMINATED! Two teams are declared DONE today.

* First, kolio's St. Louis Blues grounded the Winnipeg Jets for good winning their series 4-2. So St. Louis will take their beautiful blue and gold colors into the Western Conference Semifinals. STL won 3-2 at home today.

* The Colorado Avalanche won their series by icing the Calgary Flames. Just like the Columbus Blue Jackets, Colorado is a 2nd Wild Card seed while Calgary was a No. 1 seed in the Pacific Division. Colorado won their series 4-1.


STL will get the winner of the Nashville/Dallas series (DAL currently leads their series 3-2), and COL will get the winner of the San José/Vegas series (VGK leads their series 3-2). DAL defeated NSH 5-3 today in Nashville.


On the Eastern end of the Stanley Cup Playoffs, the TOR/BOS series is lead 3-2 by Toronto, and the WAS/CAR series is lead by the Washington Capitals 3-2 with a 6-0 win by WAS in Washington, D.C. today.


But again- Winnipeg and Calgary are DONE. Canada's last hope for a possible champion this season is with Toronto.
 

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