Biggest Surprise-Biggest Disappointment

[Flickered Flame]

Most teams are closing in on 20 games played so in your opinion what are some of the surprise stories and disappointing stories.

Surprises:
The chemistry between Kunitz and Smyth.
The Boston Bruins, off to a 9-3-3 start, I didn't see that coming.
Tampa Bay and Nashville are also off to good starts, better than I thought they'd be.

Disappointments:
The Calgary Flames.
Philadelphia
Chicago
Not sure about disappointing players.

[Caged Great]

Disappointments = Florida Panthers. Didn't think my team would've been as bad as they have been.

[Knut]

Originally Posted by Caged Great

Disappointments = Florida Panthers. Didn't think my team would've been as bad as they have been.

I did.

[Da_Chief]

Philly is still trying to figure things out but so far yes it has been disappointing.

Sorry Cheese but the Flames aren't a disappointment imo. They are who we thought they were and they're not being let off the hook.

Avs and Hawks have really struggled.

Isles have played much better then I expected (of course whipping Philly a few times already this year).

[Caged Great]

Originally Posted by Hesla

I did.

I don't mind really, just gives all my young players an extra year to develop and build value. Next year was when I was figuring that my team would be ready to compete for sure anyway. In order to properly rebuild, you need to be patient and not try to rush things when you're not ready.

[TurdFerguson]

The League
Surprises
-islanders. Smyth and Kunitz really?
-minny getting it done with Schneider. Playing well above his 76 rating.
- la. Expected them to be good, but man they are stingy on d.

Disappointments
-Philly struggling early. I'm sure chief will deal his way out of it though
- Hawks. Really expected them to be stronger...lots of time left though


My Team
Surprises
-my 3rd line of Winnik-Ward-Smithson has been lights out.
-My PK has been amazing (1 goal against) while chipping in for 3 or 4 shorties
-Team discipline has been good. Bottom (or top) 10 in pim/g
-Keeping shots against down (top 5 in this cat)
-Vermette has sparked whatever line he plays on. only problem is he can only play on 1 line at a time...
-Dallas is near the tops of the league...expected to be better but not near the tops. I'll enjoy it while it lasts

Disappointments
-Jeff carter was soo good to me in the preseason but apparently just doesn't like the real games. Not brutal stats...but expecting a lot more from him
-Bertuzzi..play some defense will you.
-Yandle not really getting the pts i was looking for but maybe this will come around
-Power Play is brutal!

[mbeauchamp76]

The more shocking part about Kunitz and Smyth is that they are doing it without a number one center. Thought they were overpaid at over 7M each but they are earning their paycheck for the first month anyway. We will see how much longer the magic will last.

Other than Mitchell going down for most of the first month there is not much else to be disappointed about. We are definitely overachievers in most peoples eyes. Lundy has had his moments but has been playing just better than average.

The suprise is the Islanders are predominently winning with offense and not defense as what might of been expected

[Knut]

Capitals:

Surprises
DAn Cleary is #4 in league scoring
Thomas Greiss (69ov) has won both games he started

Disappointments
Tim Thomas has been inconsistent

League-wide

Surprises -
Goffie getting sim chemistry
Islanders dynamic duo

Disapointments -
Flames and hurricanes way down the standings

[Superfraggle]

Originally Posted by TurdFerguson

-Jeff carter - my own little disappointment....

I can take that off your hands if you like. You know...because I'm a nice guy and all. I just don't like to see good people disappointed.

[Hanni]

Surprises
Going 3-1-1 to start the year, though that didn't last, nor did I expect it would
Steve Sullivan being 3rd on the team in scoring
Woywitka and Picard on D playing solid, a -1 and +1 respectivly

Disappointments
Steve Sullivan being 3rd on the team in scoring
Langenbruner with only 8 points

[MJK]

Surprises: The LA Kings are in 1st. Gross.

Dissapointments: The Columbus Blue Jackets

[JiriHrdina]

Surprises
- getting constantly outshot in games but winning most of them. Can it hold up?
- Corey Schneider has been great lessening the need for a #1 goalie
- Derek Morris has been a great free agent addition on the blueline

Disappointments
- JM Liles, Kevin Shattenkirk and AP only 3 points between them

[flambers]

Surprises
- Nik Antroprov has had an outstanding start to his season
- Mike Knuble, before he was hurt he had 17 pts in 11 games. Mike is a SIM friendly player and will score a pile of points this season... (yes I will move him... )

Disappointments'

- Rangers have had at least 10 players on the IR at one time or another so far this season. Currently there are 4 of them on the IR.
- Defense, Rangers have 8 CPHL dman and that is not enough..... Go figure.

[Slava]

I'm surprised with both of the division leaders at this point. I knew that they would have solid teams but I didn't expect them to be as good as they've been. I am also surprised that we've been as good as we have been, even after losing Marc Savard for a month.

As for the negative surprises I can't get past Philadelphia. They've spent a boatload of cash and basically have an all-star roster only to have the same record as mine! Its only 17 games in I suppose, but thats a pretty bad start for them. I'm also somewhat surprised at Columbus and Colorado....although disappointed would be the wrong word. I'm definitely not disappointed at their results so far!

[KevanGuy]

Being successful in this league (especially with this new sim) isn't just about stacking your team and spending tons of money. You need to know how to manage your team and how to get the most out of them, especially when injuries and cold streaks hit. So, having said that, it is hard for me to say who the surprises and disappointments are. It is weird to see the Islanders and the Sens at or near the top - relative to the past I mean.

As for the Bruins, I'm happy my vision during the summer is being executed so well by my players. 16 games in and only 3 regulation losses is outstanding. If I had to pick a disappointment so far I would point to Lehtonen's numbers. He is 8-3-2 but his GAA is 3.03 and SA% is .906. Not great but he is getting the job done.

[Mango]

Surprises:
- the SIM is still all about chemistry. I thought the new version of the SIM, combined with our ratings would change it. I agree with what KG said. It really is all about finding players that work together and somehow being able to manage everything.
- something else I've noticed is the little adjustments you can make for how you'd like to play if you're up/down a goal really do make a difference.
- I'm surprised the Canucks are a .500 team thus far.

Disappointments:
- I thought there would be more rookies making an impact this season. However, those GMs that do have some great ones are very lucky.
- Truthfully, it's hard for me to judge other teams as disappointments and what not.