Who is going to have the Sophmore Blues??

Burner said:
LOL are you kidding me? Price sucks because he didn't lead the league in GAA and wins? Halak is going to be the starter? What else can you tell us?
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I don't think it's fair to jump on him; he didn't say Price sucked.

The letdown is almost inevitable, I feel. He wasn't very good in the playoffs and the expectations are going to be out of this world, practically setting him up for a let-down. Now, I by no means believe he'll lose his starting job to Halak at any point, I just don't see him touching the lofty expectations.
 
The only expectation on Price is to pick it up in the playoffs. I don't know what expectations anyone else is talking about. He had a .920SV%, just .04 shy from #1. GAA is a team stat that is pinned on the goalie, as are wins.

Patrick Kane didn't lead the league in anything last season, maybe he'll have a disastrous year as well and will fall down to #2 center on the Hawks.

It's a dumb assumption
 
Burner said:
LOL are you kidding me? Price sucks because he didn't lead the league in GAA and wins? Halak is going to be the starter? What else can you tell us?
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Erm....not really what I said there Sassy McSasserson. Do you remember Price's last few games of the playoffs? If you look at the hobby love he's getting his values put him in "Franchise goalie" territory. He's not ready for that just yet. And if you look at the way the two played in tandem after Huet got traded it's not much of a stretch to see Halak take over, even if it's just for the first half of the season.
 
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Ferris said:
Erm....not really what I said there Sassy McSasserson. If you look at the hobby love he's getting his values put him in "Franchise goalie" territory. He's not ready for that just yet.
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You're one of a kind Ryan LOL

I have to agree with you though if we're looking at this from a "Hobby Love" perspective. How could he possibly live up to the hobby love he's getting in only his second year? Plus, he's what? 20 years old?
 
Ferris said:
Erm....not really what I said there Sassy McSasserson. Do you remember Price's last few games of the playoffs? If you look at the hobby love he's getting his values put him in "Franchise goalie" territory. He's not ready for that just yet. And if you look at the way the two played in tandem after Huet got traded it's not much of a stretch to see Halak take over, even if it's just for the first half of the season.
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I forgot that NHLers determine expectations based on how much their hockey cards sell for.

Do you even follow the Habs? Price played better than ever after Huet got traded. He was actually worse with Huet in the lineup. For a goalie that benefited from such a stellar team, it makes me wonder why Price faced over 31 shots per game on average.

Halak is primed to take over Price for #1 after such impressive victories against the likes of Toronto, St Lous, the Islanders and the Kings. He did after all play a whopping 6 games last year.

Price has a good head on his shoulders. I can't see anything in his character that would indicate he'd falter under pressure. And I sure as hell am not going to judge the future of Price, or any player for that matter, on a 4 game sample in the 2nd round of the playoffs. Price had his reasons for his performance vs Philly and whether they are valid or not is another issue, but he's had his rest after almost 2 straight years of hockey, has dropped 25lbs. I can't imagine for the life of me how Price is going to lose his job to Halak. Don't get me wrong, Halak is a great goalie, and will be a #1 somewhere in the future, but that's a long time away, and it's not going to be in Montreal
 
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Burner said:
I forgot that NHLers determine expectations based on how much their hockey cards sell for.

Do you even follow the Habs? Price played better than ever after Huet got traded. He was actually worse with Huet in the lineup. For a goalie that benefited from such a stellar team, it makes me wonder why Price faced over 31 shots per game on average.

Halak is primed to take over Price for #1 after such impressive victories against the likes of Toronto, St Lous, the Islanders and the Kings. He did after all play a whopping 6 games last year.

Price has a good head on his shoulders. I can't see anything in his character that would indicate he'd falter under pressure. And I sure as hell am not going to judge the future of Price, or any player for that matter, on a 4 game sample in the 2nd round of the playoffs. Price had his reasons for his performance vs Philly and whether they are valid or not is another issue, but he's had his rest after almost 2 straight years of hockey, has dropped 25lbs. I can't imagine for the life of me how Price is going to lose his job to Halak. Don't get me wrong, Halak is a great goalie, and will be a #1 somewhere in the future, but that's a long time away, and it's not going to be in Montreal
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I don't think Ryan was saying that NHLers determine anything by what their cards sell for. He meant to say that Price will not live up to the "hype" he's getting in the hobby and, to be honest, he's probably right.
 
settle down now.....Halak a long time away? isn't price 20yrs old? Price had a great year, i never said he didn't, however the thread is who will have the blues, its my opinion that price will. I like the comment about Halak's wins last year....clever. However if you remember price being sent to the minors last year, don't think it can't happen again. But I have been wrong before, although not very often.......lol
 
iggyfan said:
settle down now.....Halak a long time away? isn't price 20yrs old? Price had a great year, i never said he didn't, however the thread is who will have the blues, its my opinion that price will. I like the comment about Halak's wins last year....clever. However if you remember price being sent to the minors last year, don't think it can't happen again. But I have been wrong before, although not very often.......lol
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Price isn't heading to the minors again. That is not gonna happen
 
iggyfan said:
settle down now.....Halak a long time away? isn't price 20yrs old? Price had a great year, i never said he didn't, however the thread is who will have the blues, its my opinion that price will. I like the comment about Halak's wins last year....clever. However if you remember price being sent to the minors last year, don't think it can't happen again. But I have been wrong before, although not very often.......lol
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Price was sent down when Huet was in the lineup, not after he took over the reigns from him, which is when he started to play better. A sign IMO of someone who is up to the task.

Let me be clear here, when you we talk about the sophomore blues, I imagine something like Andrew Raycroft. Maybe I'm wrong in my understanding of the blues. I won't deny that Price may not continue at the torrid pace of .920SV% over a full 60-65 game season, but I don't see him falling to the level where he'll lose his job either, especially as long as Gainey is GM. That's not to say he doesn't stand a chance at improving either. Like I said, he's had his R&R and dropped 25lbs. I think he's determined to play better.

I think Price's reputation has been tainted by some idiots in Montreal, mainly the media and 13 year old kids who pollute message boards and talk of Price in the same light as former 4 and 6 time Cup winning Habs goalies. I find the resentment towards Price is not so much about Price himself, but towards dumb talk by idiot fans who probably only watch hockey 4-5x a year, or by media outlets who have nothing better to do than rile up an already sensitive fanbase in Montreal.

Of the top tier guys, I see nothing in Toews, Kane, Price or Mueller that would indicate they'd slump, but then again, I thought Jordan Staal would improve on his rookie year. I guess time will tell.
 
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jaywings19 said:
I'm going with the hometown pick... Brandon Dubinsky.

He had most of his playing time centering Jaromir Jagr on the first line. I'm not sure what kind of role the Rangers have in store for him this year. However, he won't have the space to operate like he did when defenders went to cover Jagr.
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Agreed. i think hes hyped too much. a good player but hes nothing special. and thats coming from a HUGE rangers fan.
 
Tom Gilbert...I think a healthy Souray and the acquisition of Visnovsky will cut into his offensive opportunities.
 
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I would like this topic changed to who thinks Carey Price will falter?:D

Did I mention I collect Price?:eek:

43-12-5

7 SO

25 :habs: :stanley:

A tad optimistic:dance:
 
Robert.Colianni said:
Is that even legitimate? How can he slump when he never actually was in the limelight?
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I'm sorry I must have missed the post where "in the limelight" was listed as part of the requirements to determine whether a player had a successful season or not.

Tom Gilbert scored 33 points as a rookie defenseman in the NHL as a member of the Edmonton Oilers. Who doesn't consider that a very good debut?
 
I might agree with Price to a small degree. However, I can't imagine any of the sophs having true slumps. I especially disagree with Mueller having one. He is a phenomenal player and Phoenix seems to be a team that has started to rebuild well. The pieces are falling into place for the organization and I think the Pacific Division will be absolutely brutal this season. I'm excited!
 
digitalmonkey said:
I'm sorry I must have missed the post where "in the limelight" was listed as part of the requirements to determine whether a player had a successful season or not.

Tom Gilbert scored 33 points as a rookie defenseman in the NHL as a member of the Edmonton Oilers. Who doesn't consider that a very good debut?
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He was not recognized by anyone during the season. Chances are, he will not get any recognition again this season. Slumps get noticed. Just like when someone tears it up, they get noticed. A slump requires more production than finishing in last place, but playing hard nosed. If that were not the case, Sami Kapanen had been slumping year in and year out.
 
Robert.Colianni said:
He was not recognized by anyone during the season. Chances are, he will not get any recognition again this season. Slumps get noticed. Just like when someone tears it up, they get noticed. A slump requires more production than finishing in last place, but playing hard nosed. If that were not the case, Sami Kapanen had been slumping year in and year out.
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I think you mean he was not recognized by you and others who don't watch hockey. Those who follow the NHL know how well Gilbert played last season.
 
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The Score Sports Forecaster - "Impact injuries to key defenders Joni Pitkanen and Sheldon Souray provided a major opportunity for Gilbert to step up last season and he took full advantage of the extra ice time. An up-and-comer, Gilbert proved he could play key minutes defensively and shoulder a big role on the power play. He has size and speed, but he still needs more work on his defensive-zone coverage in order to become a complete rearguard. There could be more offensive production in Gilbert's future. His skills are sound."

Hockey: The Magazine identifies the top 3 stars for each team for the 2007-08 season. Gilbert is Edmonton's #2 star right behind Ales Hemsky.

Edmonton also thought enough about him to sign him to a new 6-year deal worth $24 million.
 
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