WC Playoffs Round 1: St. Louis Blues vs Chicago Blackhawks (Blackhawks win 4-2).

[CalgaryFan1988]

Originally Posted by dino7c

Hawks are going to the west final at the least

Hopefully for them, the other series all go the distance and Toews, among others, can rest up. Crawford is the kind of goalie that can make or break a series. The west is tough this season, but the Hawks can definitely repeat. Hossa and Sharp aren't even playing that great right now......

[JurassicTunga12]

Keith makes it 5-1 Hawks.

[sureLoss]

For those wondering what the Miller/Ott trade looks like now:

[FlamesFanInOilCountry]

Originally Posted by dino7c

anaheim, LA, SJ, Boston...Burke already said you can have some small skilled guys but need to surround them


lets not get too crazy either, blues are still a very good team...series has been close one really good team was gonna lose

Point taken. I brought this up more because I think the Blues and Hawks are two teams built very differently. I'm not about to chastise Burke as he hasn't really made his stamp on the Flames yet, but I hope it is a mixture (as he has alluded to).

I agree, the Blues are a good team, but clearly not a contender... Yet. It will be interesting to see if you see more maturation out of the some of the younger guys like Tarasenko or if you see some trades happen because of this (how much patience does St. Louis Management have?)

[dino7c]

St. Louis put themselves in a bad situation when they lost 6 in a row at the end of the season. Should have won the division and had Minny in the first round but they blew it

[d_phaneuf]

Blues need to make a deal, they have a ton of depth but they need a 40 goal guy they can count on

[sureLoss]

Originally Posted by diane_phaneuf

Blues need to make a deal, they have a ton of depth but they need a 40 goal guy they can count on

Perhaps Evander Kane? They probably have the assets to get that done with the Jets.

[Derek Sutton]

Originally Posted by diane_phaneuf

Blues need to make a deal, they have a ton of depth but they need a 40 goal guy they can count on

Malkin for Oshie and Berglund, book it.

[d_phaneuf]

I think they would want someone more established then Kane, although that kind of deal from both sides might make a ton of sense

the above with Malkin if he was ever made available would be the perfect candidate

they still essentially have 3 2nd lines, they need someone to turn that 1st line in to what all the other big teams have

Backes is a good player, but he's not a 1st line center, he's miscast in that role

hindsight is 20/20 but if they knew Seguin was going to be available last summer that would be what they need

[Aarongavey]

Originally Posted by Ashasx

The Blackhawks should be the template for what a team needs to win championships: skill and speed.

Yes if you are a rebuilding team I would look at the Hawks. You do not need to be big to win in today's NHL.

[the_only_turek_fan]

Originally Posted by OILFAN #81

It's what the Blues do. Was pretty much expecting Chicago to beat them in 6. St. Louis with the way they build their team will never win. They are a good team but they don't have any star forwards. Backes, Oshie and Tarasenko are good players but they aren't stars. Chicago has Toews, Kane, Sharp and Hossa, and the Ducks have Getzlaf and Perry. St. Louis lacks a star forward. Chicago can play well for a few minutes with their stars and take a couple goal lead on the Blues.

Boston does not have a real game breaker and yet they won the cup in 2011, and have a good shot at doing it this year.

[d_phaneuf]

Originally Posted by the_only_turek_fan

Boston does not have a real game breaker and yet they won the cup in 2011, and have a good shot at doing it this year.

they play in different conferences, I imagine if St.Louis was in the EC over the last 5 years they would have at least 1, maybe multiple SCF's appearances

[EldrickOnIce]

Originally Posted by Aarongavey

You do not need to be big to win in today's NHL.

Maybe not - but it doesn't hurt having the best player in the world as your captain

[OILFAN #81]

Originally Posted by the_only_turek_fan

Boston does not have a real game breaker and yet they won the cup in 2011, and have a good shot at doing it this year.

I would call Patrice Bergeron a star forward. Guy is an amazing player.

And I was talking about the West hence the comparison to Chicago/Anaheim. They can't compete in the West with Backes being their best forward.

[thefoss1957]

Q finally woke up and stopped forcing Handzus into the 2nd line...using him only as a draw specialist and for PK...with Depth guy Ben Smith centering Line #2, Hossa or Kane and Sharp were more dangerous, with a quick guy that was tough, digging pucks off the wall...

IMO, the biggest difference in the series, was the productivity of those kind of "depth" guys...Lapierre and Reaves were dominating the early games...then, after the NHL warned the teams about post-whistle activities, those guys seemed to make less impact on play...Shaw, Saad, Smith, Kruger, for the 'Hawks, all came on in the last 4 games, and drove a lot of possession, with Q REALLY limiting the amount of time the 4th line was getting.

A lot of 'Hawk fans would have liked to see Morin dress...and in this game Versteeg was a scratch, and Nordstrom was dressed....but Bollig and Nordstrom saw very little ice.

Looking ahead, I don't see the need for as much "muscle" vs. the next round guys...so I wouldn't be surprised to see Bollig scratched for Morin.

[Cleveland Steam Whistle]

Originally Posted by Derek Sutton

Malkin for Oshie and Berglund, book it.

Stop telling us to "book it".

[RyZ]

Originally Posted by Derek Sutton

Malkin for Oshie and Berglund, book it.

If Malkin is on the block, Pittsburgh is going to get far more enticing offers than that for him.

[puckluck2]

Originally Posted by EldrickOnIce

Maybe not - but it doesn't hurt having the best player in the world as your captain

Is this the Pens thread?

[N-E-B]

Originally Posted by RyZ

If Malkin is on the block, Pittsburgh is going to get far more enticing offers than that for him.

Oshie and Berglund is a pretty enticing offer if you ask me...

[Husky]

Originally Posted by N-E-B

Oshie and Berglund is a pretty enticing offer if you ask me...

I don't agree. Malkin is a franchise player, Oshie and Berglund aren't even legit 1st line players.