Quote:
Originally Posted by blayze
First of all you're right - my bone was with Pengwin, not you. But you were the one who responded to my cynical tirade, so you happened to be in the line of fire so that's my bad.
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Its all good dude, just don't shoot the messenger y'know?
Lets address a couple things I think you're off-base with:
1)
It sounds like we're all in agreement that Dallas had a shitty defense last year.
Now who's putting words in the mouths of others? Dallas was middle of the pack (17th) in team defense last year and they finished a few games out of the playoffs on a bad losing streak.
I dunno how that equates to a 'shitty' defense for you, but for me that's just a 'meh' defense.
2)
Factually speaking, Dallas has lost several defensemen and hasn't signed any experienced guys to fill those shoes... so let's see... common sense here... why the hell would their defense improve?
a ton? they lost Pardy, Fistric, Grossman and Souray I believe. Grossman is really the only one that hurts them defensively over what they have this season IMO. Personally I see their D as kind of a wash with last year's. Like many teams they look to be trying to keep icing a competitive team on the ice while building with their young talent. For example they've got that kid Oleksiak who is just freakin huge...like Gill or Chara huge. I think when you've got a guy like that you need to develop him sooner rather than later because he can have such a huge impact on the team.
Plus aren't you're overlooking the forwards...team defense can be improved by a shutdown forward just as much as a d-man. Not saying that is the case here, but I recall a former Star named Jere Lehtinen who I would rather have on my team over most defensemen in the league, just sayin
3)
Either way - I don't believe it will have a negative impact on Lehtonen's numbers. Wasn't a factor last season, won't be one this season. Lehtonen has steadily improved - it's not like he had a string of shitty seasons followed by a great season out of the blue.
He had a huge career year after many years of mediocre play, I'm not sure I follow you here.
4)
Their offense this year is WAY better than last year. Common - Jagr, Whitney, and Roy? All of these guys were close to point per game in recent seasons... hell Whitney was PPG last year! Those 3 vs. Ribeiro and Ott? Are you kidding me? Their top 6 next season will include the likes of Benn, Eriksson, Jagr, Roy, Whitney, Ryder and Morrow.
Whitney and Jagr are both 40, I wouldn't put too much stock in that. The loss of Ott is huge. Just because a guy isn't a sniper or a dangler doesn't mean he doesn't have a huge impact on his team's success, Ott is that kinda guy and I guarantee you neither Whitney or Jagr are gonna fill the hole left behind by him. All those other guys you mention were there already so I don't understand why that's relevant? Also Derek Toy hasn't had ppg in 4 years, keep your facts straight
5)
and I've explained why their team has improved OVERALL (which is what I was trying to say all along), and how that translates to more wins and potentially more shutouts.
So you feel the team has improved OVERALL, but not at all defensively? I think it might have been more clear had you just said as much in the first place, that their D was no better or worse but that their offense had improved dramatically enough that it at very least compensated for it. Because when we look at goaltender stats we automatically look at team D too. You think Chris Osgood was a good goalie? Or just a medicore goalie with a stellar D in front of him?
6)
You guys may agree or disagree... I really don't give a ****. What I do know is I stand by my word, and I have $500 that says Lehtonen will kick ass this year.
your statement was "I think their team has actually improved this year, so those numbers should at least stay the same or improve."
so define the terms of the bet that are consistent with that statement and I will happily take your money
