19:24 J joined #NHL
19:24 bookworm: Think it's ending tonight?
19:24 J: I have no idea; I haven't kept up with it in weeks.
19:24 J: I did glance and see that apparently the Canadiens and the Lightning made it. The latter didn't surprise me.
19:24 bookworm: Lightning trying to sweep
19:24 bookworm: It's Game 4
19:25 J: I did tell someone a while back that the Canadiens still had a 'window' for a championship, but that it would probably close within a couple of years. That was three years ago.
19:25 J: I suppose one year off isn't too bad.
19:26 J: The Lightning are much stronger than the Canadiens, but teams facing elimination tend to play harder (likewise, teams that have a big lead tend to relax).
19:27 bookworm: Montreal scored first, but TB tied it in the second
19:27 bookworm: Canadiens score!!
19:27 bookworm: just now!
19:27 bookworm: 2-1
19:28 J: Tampa Bay still has time to tie it up. But it's all the psychological difference in the world.
19:28 J: They want to win, of course, but they're not *desperate*; they can't be.
19:28 J: At least not in the same sense as if it were the other way around.
19:29 J: I wouldn't be surprised if Montreal pulls out a win, whether in regulation or overtime. But that doesn't mean they'll make a comeback in the series, of course.
19:30 bookworm: I highly doubt they can come all the way back in the series, but I would like to have more than the minimum games played
19:30 J: One other thing - if Tampa Bay loses, they have the chance to win next game at home. I'm not sure it's actually better to win at home (if you win away, you have more time to celebrate, and the celebration, at first, is more intimate than it is when you're at home).
19:31 J: But their fans would still appreciate seeing them lift the Cup in their own arena.
19:31 J: So there isn't a lot of pressure to win it now, since the odds of winning the series are so good and it's debatable whether an away win is better than a home win.
19:32 J: I don't mind a sweep, if it reflects the strength of the teams.
19:32 J: Everybody likes to see the Stanley Cup Finals go to game 7 (and then preferably deep overtime). I'm sympathetic to that myself.
19:32 J: But if you're a big fan of your team, there's something to them steamrolling the opposition too.
19:33 J: I think a long win means more in the moment (when people can appreciate the outcome of the 'battle'), but a short win means more in the long run (when fans start comparing the strength of championship teams).
19:33 bookworm: Lightning score!
19:33 bookworm: 2-2
19:35 bookworm: 5 minutes left
19:36 J: Tampa Bay is apparently a legitimate dynasty at this point, similar to the turn-of-the-century teams, with multiple wins and appearances in the last few years.
19:36 J: If they were to win this game, it would apparently be the first time a defending championship team swept the Finals since the Red Wings in '98.
19:36 J: Well, the first time *any* team swept the Finals since '98.
19:37 bookworm: was wondering how common it is
19:38 bookworm: back to back champions too
19:39 J: The '90s were full of repeat offenders. From '95 to '03, I think it bounced between four teams - the Red Wings, Avalanche, Stars, and Devils.
19:39 J: There's at least a couple of times when the real 'championship series' was effectively decided in the Western Conference Finals, and then the winner finished off the weaker team from the East.
19:40 J: '98 was one of the most obvious instances, but there are other years when it's arguably just as valid.
19:40 J: It was probably true for every series in that time period where the Devils *weren't* in the Finals, although some Eastern contenders gave it a good run.
19:40 bookworm: off the post!
19:40 bookworm: yikes!
19:40 bookworm: "The Lightning coming that close"
19:40 bookworm: 2 min
19:41 J: The Sabres in '99 won two games, doing probably above average for non-NJ Eastern teams. Their team was considered to be average overall, but Hasek made them a contender.
19:41 bookworm: oh my gosh
19:41 bookworm: just showed a replay
19:42 bookworm: how did he miss that
19:42 bookworm: Montreal so lucky
19:42 bookworm: that should have been the game/series right there
19:42 J: Well, maybe. There were probably other moments in the game that could've gone the other way.
19:42 bookworm: oh, TB player bleeding from the faceoff
19:43 bookworm: oh wow that was a good hit right to the face
19:43 J: By a 'good hit', do you mean a hard hit?
19:43 bookworm: yes, a good solid hit
19:43 bookworm: right into the nose
19:44 bookworm: they missed the call in real time but they reviewed
19:44 bookworm: TB power play
19:44 bookworm: 1 min left
19:45 bookworm: puck out of play, 12.3 left
19:45 bookworm: OT!
19:46 bookworm: 3 minutes left on the power play
19:46 J: If Tampa Bay scores on that, I bet there'll be a fuss.
19:47 J: Some fans seem to have the idea that power plays shouldn't resolve playoff games, and it potentially deciding who wins the Cup, I guess, would be even more so.
19:47 J: Although if the hit was obviously wrong, that would mitigate it.
19:47 bookworm: well, don't hit the guy in the face then
19:48 bookworm: this is the clearest penalty you could see
19:48 bookworm: In general I get that though
19:48 bookworm: Somewhat even agree
19:48 bookworm: but this was a clear one
19:49 J: I'm glad, for their sake.
19:49 J: If it was sort of a 'grey area' or 'judgment call', it'd be viewed as a tainted cup, and we'd never hear the end of it.
19:50 J: (As if it was guaranteed that if it wasn't for that, the other team would for sure have won the game and then won the series.)
19:51 J: Well, NHL fans would never hear the end of it. I might, since I'm not actively following them much these days.
20:00 bookworm: here we go!
20:00 bookworm: for the Cup, or for survival
20:03 bookworm: I don't like NBC's new score box thing
20:04 bookworm: really hard to get information at a quick glance, at least for me
20:04 bookworm: maybe just because I'm not used to it
20:04 bookworm: but I feel like it's actually the layout/fonts somehow
20:06 bookworm: power play over
20:08 bookworm: goal!!
20:08 bookworm: We're going to Game 5!
20:09 J: It seemed plausible.
I love Carey Price.