Florida: Because their roster is actually very interestingly put together even though they have no true stars. I believe in the Tallon plan.
Washington: I want to see a healthy Backstrom and Ovechkin play great hockey.
New Jersey: way underrated. Kovalchuk and Parise are two superstar, top 10 in the league wingers. I will also root for them because it's fun to watch Martin Brodeur get scored on, and that can only happen while they remain in the playoffs.
Against:
New York Rangers: they're definitely an Eastern Conference playoff team, but basically they owe 15 points in the standings to Lundquist.
Nashville Predators: Actually a terrible, boring team this year with the exception of their two star defensemen and Rinne.
Philadelphia Flyers: I love Giroux, but this team takes the extracurricular stuff too far too often. Too much drama.
Vancouver Canucks: I don't really like the Sedins, and this is a team (a bit like the Flyers) that seems to cause melodrama for whatever reason. I'd rather not have the defining moment of a Stanley Cup Finals be someone biting someone else's finger.
Special Neutral Category:
Los Angeles Kings: A team in bland black uniforms that plays with no style to their game. All their players look like the same 6 ft. 200 lb. guy getting the puck deep and doing nothing that special with it.
Which is weird for a team with Kopitar, Carter, Richards, Doughty, and Brown. So I'm partially hoping they get out quickly and partially hoping they start playing a more watchable style.
Los Angeles Kings: A team in bland black uniforms that plays with no style to their game. All their players look like the same 6 ft. 200 lb. guy getting the puck deep and doing nothing that special with it.
their whole team has really bland names too. theyre neutral to the max.
Doesn't that apply to most teams with a legit starter? Hell, the Canes won the last two games simply because of Ward.
Yes and I don't think you can count on that goaltending to continue into the playoffs. Individual save percentages vary enormously from year to year, let alone from week to week. Look at Mike Smith and Brian Elliot this year, for example.
So imho a lot of luck comes into goaltending, and you can't count on that luck to win you hockey games.
Yes and I don't think you can count on that goaltending to continue into the playoffs. Individual save percentages vary enormously from year to year, let alone from week to week. Look at Mike Smith and Brian Elliot this year, for example.
So imho a lot of luck comes into goaltending, and you can't count on that luck to win you hockey games.
Well, yeah, but when you reach a point with guys like Lundqvist and to a lesser extent Miller, Rinne, etc. It's not luck anymore, they're consistently good.
That said, I agree with you re the Rangers in the standings and Lundqvist. 15 points might be underselling it. I honestly think they're a paper tiger and would get shredded vs the Pens and maybe even by the Bruins. Any team with better depth that can run high end goaltending against them has to be the favorite in that series IMO.
How can anyone root for the caps?? If ur a true canes fan, makes no sense.. I hope for phoenix to make a run with whits.. and i always like nashville.. could be the year for them.. Flyers- pens what a matchup, and i hate the bruins.. so go sens!
Personally I will always pick a Western conference team to bandwagon. Just a preference, Eastern conference teams are too close to home I guess...can't stop seeing them as the enemy.
Right there with you on that. There are a limited number of Western Conference teams that I could truly invest myself even slightly, and the entire Eastern Conference is absolutely off limits. Every team has done something at one time or another to make me hate them.
Phoenix over Vancouver (Just to annoy Canada)
St. Louis over San Jose (Lived in the former before)
Los Angeles over Chicago (Now that they got rid of Jack Johnson)
Nashville over Detroit (Easy choice!)
NY Rangers over Washington (Lived in the former before)
Ottawa over Boston (Ottowa deserves another shot)
Florida over New Jersey (Close tie)
Philadelphia over Pittsburgh (Lived in the former before)
I also usually pick a Eastern team every year whose bandwagon I can jump on.
Again, I really don't understand any Detroit hate that's out there. I completely understand the Vancouver hate, but Detroit is simply the model franchise. If you're the "hate greatness" type of person, that's fine, but that's just a near-perfect, classy franchise with some absolutely FUN players to watch.
I could be biased because Datsyuk's my favorite player in the NHL, but even without him I don't think I could ever hate Detroit. They've done it the right way for too long for me to have anything but the utmost respect for the entire franchise.
I also usually pick a Eastern team every year whose bandwagon I can jump on.
Again, I really don't understand any Detroit hate that's out there. I completely understand the Vancouver hate, but Detroit is simply the model franchise. If you're the "hate greatness" type of person, that's fine, but that's just a near-perfect, classy franchise with some absolutely FUN players to watch.
I could be biased because Datsyuk's my favorite player in the NHL, but even without him I don't think I could ever hate Detroit. They've done it the right way for too long for me to have anything but the utmost respect for the entire franchise.
I've said it before, and I'll say it again.
I respect Detroit. They're fantastic, and there's no way for anybody to discredit that.
That said, I dislike Babcock. I've amazed by what Datsyuk can do, but I also dislike him. I dislike Jimmy Howard. The only Red Wings that I like are Zetterberg and Lidstrom(duh).
It's not really hating the team necessarily, but more of disliking parts of the team to the point where I don't really care for the team that much.
yes? 
