Posted on 05/21/2018 3:44:13 AM PDT by airborne
Storybook season that started with tragedy is four wins from championship
They talked about it ahead of time, just in case. The Vegas Golden Knights didn't have a captain. They were the epitome of a team. So if they defeated the Winnipeg Jets and won the Western Conference, who would accept the Clarence Campbell Bowl?
It had to be defenseman Deryk Engelland, because this storybook season has been about more than becoming the greatest expansion team of all-time, more than establishing the NHL in a new market and more than giving Las Vegas its first major league sports team.
(Excerpt) Read more at nhl.com ...
On Oct. 10, nine days after 58 people were killed and hundreds injured in a mass shooting on the Strip, Engelland gave a speech during a ceremony before the home opener at T-Mobile Arena. He'd played in Las Vegas in the ECHL in 2003-05 and '04-05. He'd met his wife there. They'd had their children there and lived in there in the offseason.
"I know how special this city is," he told the crowd. "To all the brave first responders that have worked tirelessly and courageously through this whole tragedy, we thank you. To the families and friends of the victims, we'll do everything we can to help you and our city heal. We are Vegas Strong."
(let me know if you want on or off the ping list)
I would not be surprised that Last Vegas Golden Knights win it all, they are that good.
Will they parachute into the rink?
Considering some of their performances before games this post-season, I would not be surprised!
The show they put on is second to none!
Five former Penguins on the team, including 12-3 goalie Marc-Andre Fleury.
I’d not want to take anything away from LV, I heard just a little discussion on the radio discussing how LV got a sweetheart deal to have such a good team as an expansion team. I’m not an expert on the sport so, it is just something to pay attention to. Maybe it’s sour grapes but never do expansion teams get out of the gate so quick.
You won't find a bigger hockey fan anywhere than me. If two teams from Tampa Bay and Las Vegas end up playing in the Stanley Cup finals, I probably won't watch a minute of it. It may even go down as the Finals with the lowest TV ratings in history.
bookies would lose their shirts, they gave them 150-1 odds, ha ha!
In fairness to LV, the GM - George McPhee - drafted extremely well from the pool of players made available by the other NHL teams under the rules of the expansion draft. Each time was allowed to protect a certain number of players and everyone else was eligible to be drafted.
It is true that this time around, there was only one team in the expansion (LV) as opposed to 2 or more teams as in previous expansions (in 2000 both Columbus and Minnesota were added), meaning that LV had access to all of the draft-eligible players. However; there was no salary cap back in 2000, so teams were able to leave players with big contracts "exposed" for the draft thereby actually protecting them by making them less attractive to LV on the basis salary. Vegas also was limited to choosing one player from each team.
Overall; I don't see this as Vegas having any kind of a 'sweetheart' deal. It looks like, solid, strategic drafting and deal-making in addition to a bunch of guys playing with a chip on their shoulder looking to make a statement to the teams that let them go. Just my humble opinion as a Flyers fan, but foremost, a hockey fan.
Should read: Each TEAM was allowed...
If the Knights win somebody in Pittsburgh might throw a parade with all the ex-Pens on that team. Knights shirts are second only to Pens shirts I see in public.
BTW -National ratings for these playoffs are up. People are watching and the Golden Knights are the big story.
“NBC hits the ratings jackpot with the Vegas Golden Knights - Forbes”
As a Flyer fan you have to be happy for Bellemare.
The way it was set up, with only one team in the expansion, they did get a sweet deal.
But Las Vegas odds makers gave 500-1 odds for them winning the Stanley Cup. So they weren’t expected to do so well.
It’s all over for Vegas now. They broke the ultimate NHL taboo. You NEVER touch the Conference trophies. There is only one trophy that matters.
Go Knights! I hope they win Lord Stanley’s Cup! It’s a great story.
Hey, it's Vegas!
Sid the kid touched the trophy the past two years and won so I’m not sure about the taboo. As for the sweetheart deal the team got in the expansion draft. Every team was allowed to protect 8 forwards 3 defensemen and a goalie plus all their players with less than 3 years experience , so everyone they drafted was at best a 3 rd liner or 2nd pairing d man. They got lucky that fleury (who was considered a playoff failure in recent years) was available, plus dale Tallon and the Florida management was stupid enough to pay them to take 2/3 of what is now their first line off his hands.
They touched it??? Oh dear. They either broke a tradition or reinforced it....guess we’ll see :)
While I can appreciate the Cinderella story the odds of them reaching the finals in their first year is somewhat sketchy, of course the league wants a larger fan base and wanted them to do well. Doing THIS well is a little suspect.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.