Jeff over at Sisu Hockey has a great post on how even though tonight's Caps' opponents, the Habs, look like a legitimate contender in the East on the surface, dig a little deeper and they've still got a lot of work to do (hint: Al Iafrate wouldn't be too impressed with this year's Habs). If you like numbers, check it out.Also interesting to note is that Carolina would seem to be the worst Cup Champ of the past seventeen relative to the rest of the League. Parity? Fluke? My inability to understand statistics?
4 comments:
1) The Canadiens certainly are not on par with their great teams of the past, but compared with what we have seen in the East thus far this year they have earned/deserve to be classified as a contender
2) As with almost all other teams, excpet Buffalo, they have a short coming or two, but all in all they are as solid as any non upstate NY team
The point isn't in comparing them to the great Habs teams or even to Buffalo, per se - it's in comparing them to the rest of the League. They're much closer to the pack than to the elite, according to Jeff's analysis.
1) Can anyone say parity? Mr. Bettman got his wish! 1/2 the season over and only 4 teams don't have a realistic chance of getting to the post season
2) Wasn't that supposed to increase fan interest? Not according to TV ratings, and attendance league wide
In a League where more than half the teams make the playoffs, almost everyone is still alive for a postseason berth every year.
But there are seemingly fewer "dominant" teams in the East (though the West still has its elites).
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