2024 Stanley Cup playoffs

#27      

whatahack

W
St. Peters MO
whatahack
Looked for a moment the oilers were going to blow a three goal lead.

Should be a good series with the stars...
 
#28      

Roundball Sage

R
Roundball Sage
These are four very talented and entertaining hockey clubs that are left.

One 'Original Six' club. One great team from the old WHA. And the two Southern powers from the Lone Star and Sunshine States.

Side note... Wayne Gretzy played for two of those that still remain. (And of course, great years with the Kings and a short stay in The Lou).

If we do get the Stars vs. Panthers... I can't lose. Love them both.

And if it's Oilers vs. Rangers? The hockey will still be great to watch while I'm waiting for next year.
 
#34      

altgeld88

altgeld88
Arlington, Virginia
altgeld88
whatahack said:
Who are you rooting for...
Dallas and Florida for me
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I have a soft spot for the Canadian franchises. Though I lived in Calgary for a while long ago, I support their rival the Oilers over the Stars.

Rangers for me, too. For some reason I don't warm to the Panthers, though they're an outstanding team.

All four teams are excellent. Two entertaining series, though FLA looked last evening like they're just too much for the NYR.
 
#35      

whatahack

W
St. Peters MO
whatahack
I really like Florida's style of play. Reminds me a little bit of the 2019 Blues where we would check the other teams into submission so by the 3rd period they were spent.
 
#37      

3 point girl

3
texas
3 point girl
IlliniFaninHoosierLand said:
Playoff history involving the Blues (for example, the Ben Bishop incident) and just how god awful their fans are in general. And this isn't just a Central Division thing either. I know plenty of people that aren't Blues fans that can't stand Stars fans either.
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I've been a season ticket holder for the Stars for over 30 years & you're dead wrong on this, but agree to disagree.
 
#42      

Roundball Sage

R
Roundball Sage
Well, at least one of my picks made it to the Finals.

Florida... the new true hockey hotbed. A Florida hockey team has now been/will be in the Cup Final in each of the last five years.

Edmonton is a great club. But sorry... it’s just too far from Florida.

And the Oilers have already won too many Cups. Plus, it’s tough to grow Orange trees there in Edmonton. And no warm beaches, either.

Hot sands and cold ice. Can't beat that.
 
#43      

Illinoise

Illinoise
Illinoise
I’ll be rooting for the Oilers. Watching Connor McDavid is a treat. He’s been the best player in the league for too long not to get a cup.

Hopefully next year the Hawks can take a big step and sneak in. Playoff hockey is just the greatest sports has to offer.
 
#44      

Illinoise

Illinoise
Illinoise
Don’t let it get to you. St. Louis fans think all other fanbases are not as passionate and smart as them.
 
#45      

Roundball Sage

R
Roundball Sage
Illinoise said:
Hopefully next year the Hawks can take a big step and sneak in. Playoff hockey is just the greatest sports has to offer.
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The great thing about places like Las Vegas and Dallas and Florida and Nashville doing so well on the ice is that they are buildIng/have built passionate fan bases of their own.

Chicago has been such a great hockey town for so very long with so many energetic fans that this is just part of the long-time fabric of the City. From the great teams of the 1930s to the Bobby Hull and Stan Mikita and Glenn Hall era of the 1960s to the Cups won several years ago. Chicago simply loves hockey.

And now that kind of fever had taken root in the Nevada Desert and in the warm and balmy breezes of South Florida and the crowded Metroplex of North Texas and in Music City in Tennessee. A great sport that now has strong roots from SoCal deep into Canada.

The NHL playoffs are great for many reasons including the fact that these guys play real DEFENSE, too. Something the NBA decided to forget about years ago. And their product has suffered for that. On the ice it is all-out... every second.

The only places where hockey has had trouble gaining traction have been in Arizona and in Atlanta. And neither of them will see NHL teams for a long time, if ever.

Adding Houston one day would be sweet. A natural rival for the Stars. And maybe some day the NHL will try Kansas City again.
 
#46      

AZILL

AZILL
AZILL
Roundball Sage said:
"The only places where hockey has had trouble gaining traction have been in Arizona and in Atlanta. And neither of them will see NHL teams for a long time, if ever. "

In addition to the subpar ownership group in Phoenix, they really screwed up when they moved the team away from downtown Phoenix to the far Northwestern Phoenix Metro area in Glendale to be adjacent to the Cardinals Stadium. I know it works in some cities, but I'd bet they are moving closer to the center of their fanbase, than away. Which is what happened here. The largest group of fans were in central phoenix and the East Valley. They effectively doubled or more the drive time and there was 0 public transport available. I went to 1 solitary game in all the years after they moved. Not familiar with what happened in Atlanta. Perhaps a similar series of bad decisions/ownership?
 
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#47      

IlliniFaninHoosierLand

IlliniFaninHoosierLand
IlliniFaninHoosierLand
3 point girl said:
How many post season games did the Blues play? Oh yeah, its the Stars fans that are a**h***s.
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#49      

AZILL

AZILL
AZILL
Not being a huge hockey fan, I'm gonna root for the Oilers. But I wouldn't be disappointed if the Panthers win. I guess I'm one of those weirdos who just think that Hockey in the South is bonkers, lol. Living in Phoenix the youth hockey leagues here are/have been fantastic. The Coyotes leaving will be a huge detrimental effect from here on out.

I'm going to retire soon and start a curling league either here in AZ or S Fla.... Anyone want to invest in my speculative venture?????
 
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#50      

bdutts

bdutts
Houston, Texas
bdutts
Roundball Sage said:
The great thing about places like Las Vegas and Dallas and Florida and Nashville doing so well on the ice is that they are buildIng/have built passionate fan bases of their own.

Chicago has been such a great hockey town for so very long with so many energetic fans that this is just part of the long-time fabric of the City. From the great teams of the 1930s to the Bobby Hull and Stan Mikita and Glenn Hall era of the 1960s to the Cups won several years ago. Chicago simply loves hockey.

And now that kind of fever had taken root in the Nevada Desert and in the warm and balmy breezes of South Florida and the crowded Metroplex of North Texas and in Music City in Tennessee. A great sport that now has strong roots from SoCal deep into Canada.

The NHL playoffs are great for many reasons including the fact that these guys play real DEFENSE, too. Something the NBA decided to forget about years ago. And their product has suffered for that. On the ice it is all-out... every second.

The only places where hockey has had trouble gaining traction have been in Arizona and in Atlanta. And neither of them will see NHL teams for a long time, if ever.

Adding Houston one day would be sweet. A natural rival for the Stars. And maybe some day the NHL will try Kansas City again.
Click to expand...
I just don't see Houston having a franchise. I live here and one is interested in hockey, other than Tillman Fertitta. It's football (in all forms), Astros, Rockets. Never have I heard anyone talking about anything related to hockey.