Blades aren't a championship team

[Hockey Spy]

I think everyone needs to settle down a bit and realize that this team is no where near championship caliber. They are a team with upwards of 9 rookies in the lineup each night, which is half the squad. Sure, they got off to a good start but I think we can start to see teams exposing them and outshooting them most nights. If it weren't for the above average goaltending, meaning Stanford and Morrison both played above their ability, the blades would be riding a 3 game losing streak and would be 6-4 which being realistic is probably more of an accurate reflection of how they have actually played.

My prediction is that the Blades will finish a few games above .500 and finish 4th in the division at seasons end ahead of Regina and Brandon and make the playoffs in the 7 or 8 position, likely 7th.

Also, people couldn't and can't expect Hamilton, Nicholls, Viedensky and Dziurzynski to carry the pace they were/are on. They are all likely 60 point players in the end.

Remember too, that the Blades are likely to be without Curtis Hamilton and Stefan Elliott from anywhere from 3 to 10 games around christmas for the world juniors. More over, the Under 17's will be going on and Olsen, Bews will be gone.

I know other teams will be without key players at that time of year but not rookie laden teams who defend on key veterans.

.500 team in the end or just above....Now can we just all calm down and take a deep breathe?:)

[BigCat20]

This coming from the idiot that has "inside sources", claiming the 5 and 3 team mega deals! So the broncos, warriors and raiders will all finish above the blades? This team is built on defence and playing as a complete unit. The goalies are playing over their potential? Really......Stanford was a top 3 goalies at xmas break and we relied on the top line of patterson, hulak and wintoniak to handle the majority of scoring last year. Seemed to work alright. It was luck they beat the canes and rebels last weekend? Lethbridge is terrible......the cant score and havent score on the pp yet. But yes the canes should have won! And a good hardworking effort beat red deer not unbelievable, lucky goalie! Where do you get the upwards of 9 rookies in the lineup? I'd say 5-6 and thats if you count sutter as a rookie. And what does rookie mean.....someone that hasnt played whl or one who is young(16-17) Look at Toews with the wheatkings, he's a 20 yr old rookie! Most teams have there 3rd/4th line and 3rd defense pairing comprising of '93 & '94 born. What brings the blade age down is the lack of depth in the '92's.

Look at how many '93 & "94 each of your "contending teams" have:
Broncos-10, Warriors- 10, Raiders- 8, Rebels- 10 and the Blades- 11!

I think you should change your name from Hockey Spy to Hockey Retard!

[Hockey Spy]

You must have me confused with someone else. I was the one who said there was a Kamloops-Saskatoon-Regina deal....It turned out it was just a Saskatoon-Kamloops deal.

[BigCat20]

Oh and the #3 CHL ranking is compiled by a bunch of football writers covering hockey sometimes, right?

[BigCat20]

Yah you did say the deal with kamloops but with none of the right players. I'm gonna go on record and say the blades and cougars make a deal sometime in the next calendar year!

[Hockey Spy]

Stransky
Bews
Sutter
Olsen
Daae
Elliott (if Johnson sits)
Dietz
Vandane

That is 8 rookies my friend and yes they have all played games. Which means "upwards" of 8.

Also, Morrison and Stanford have proven to both be very inconsistant goalies. They will have hot streaks and then very cold streaks. They are mid-level goalies and that is all they are. There were many instances in Red Deer where Stanford didn't have a clue where the puck was and got lucky. Red Deer was easily the better team.

Lethbridge was on par with the Blades and Lethbridge could be the worst team in the conference.

Yes, Moose Jaw, Swift Current and P.A. should all finish ahead of Saskatoon. P.A. has been without their captain and have had a fairly successful west trip already too. Even Herrod has missed games.

SC is coming on big time and Moose Jaw will as well.

Just realize, the Blades are about a .500 team. Sorry to break it to you.

[Hockey Spy]

Keep in mind, I mentioned that there was a deal with kamloops and the Blades involved that day, hours before the Blades/Blazers deal. That is hardly given myself a calandar year!

Also, the votes were in for the rankings before the Blades embarassing 5-1 loss to Moose Jaw. The rankings are done by a bunch of "scout" who simply look at the standings really.

[BigCat20]

You can say that about every goalie, in every league, every year for all of time....having hot and cold streaks. Sounds like you are pretty jealous of the best 1-2 goalies in the whl. The Rebels were by far the better team, why? cuz they out shot the Blades. Let change the game to make the winner the team that has the most shots. Genuis! These scouts only look at the standings! So how do you rank a team at the beginning of the year. They obviously dont know hockey, right? Once P.A. gets there captain back......bahbahbah......one guy is gonna make all the difference. OK. The 2 wins over PA the Blades had was luck too. Everything to you is how lucky the Blades are and how all this bad luck there oppositions had!

All theses "rookies" sure dont seem out of place do they? We'll see by the christmas break where everyone is then continue this debate! Blades will contend for the East....worst case 3rd.

[Rye]

I'm not going to jump in on how you think the Blades will do because obviously, you can't predict the future and people love that, especially the teams. They love being the underdogs just to prove people wrong. Hell, I love it too, not just for hockey, but for everything. Achieve what I expect and overachieve what others expect.

As far as predicting a trade between teams ... so what? I know someone in Brandon that tells me when a trade is under negotiation, am I going to go tell everyone here for credibility? It's the WHL, it's not rare to hear these things so I wouldn't be too proud about getting the teams right and I especially wouldn't mention anything about it without confirmation before mentioning teams, let alone the names of the players.

I'm not trying to be a dick but come on, did you really have to make a thread like this? What were you trying to accomplish compared to what it did accomplish?

[Hockey Spy]

Keep telling yourself that Bigkitten.

The Blades were outplayed in a big way in Red Deer. If you were at or watched the game you would see that.

The inconsistant play is going to all even out in the end and the Blades will be a bit above .500 at the most.

As for the rankings....They are done on projections of who may or may not be back. The currently rankings are simply who has the best records really. Nothing more than that. You will gradually see the Blades drop out of the rankings.

Blades DO NOT have the top goalie tandem in the league either, sorry!

Yes, some of the rookies are NOT ready for action. Don't be surprised if Daae or Elliott join Stovin in the Midget ranks. Stovin wasn't ready, Vandane likely isn't up to par and either are Daae or Elliott. Bews, Sutter, Olsen, Dietz are ok.

[sbtatter]

I think the Blades will finish top 3 in the conference, if they land a sniper in a trade somewhere they will be the team to beat.....

[Hockey Spy]

It just seems some Blades fans are putting the wagon before the horse. hehe



I'm not going to jump in on how you think the Blades will do because obviously, you can't predict the future and people love that, especially the teams. They love being the underdogs just to prove people wrong. Hell, I love it too, not just for hockey, but for everything. Achieve what I expect and overachieve what others expect.

As far as predicting a trade between teams ... so what? I know someone in Brandon that tells me when a trade is under negotiation, am I going to go tell everyone here for credibility? It's the WHL, it's not rare to hear these things so I wouldn't be too proud about getting the teams right and I especially wouldn't mention anything about it without confirmation before mentioning teams, let alone the names of the players.

I'm not trying to be a dick but come on, did you really have to make a thread like this? What were you trying to accomplish compared to what it did accomplish?

[patsdude114]

Blades DO NOT have the top goalie tandem in the league either, sorry!


Ummm ok who has the best goaltending tandem in the league then if its not the Blades??? Either goalie would be a starter on more then 90% of the teams in the league. I think the #s both guys put up last year & getting them BOTH back a year older proves they do have the best goaltending tandem in the WHL.

The Blades arnt going win games like how Brandon did last year just simply by out scoring everyone, the Blades win games from there goaltending out to there D. Lets face it the Blades have been missing a true goal scorer for some time now. Maybe this is the year they go trade for 1 as the Blades wont have these 2 goalies & very strong D for long got to go for it when u have the chips stacked up (meaning strong goaltending & very solid D)

Me being a Pats fan (i know feel sorry for me) i strongly feel the Blades are the best team in our division & not just cuz of there record. The Blades play on the edge, a great checking team, with very solid goaltending. The Broncos are turning it around since Eakin has came back but they are a very soft team & goaltending there isnt that strong it is decent. As for Brandon they have some talent still there but they will have some growing pains this season. MJ has no offense, there defense & goaltending is solid it still boggles my mind on why MJ traded Frazee to REG as Frazee & Howden hae had great chemistry. Im not even throwing PA into this picture they are hardly a step above the Pats prob more even then most may think.

Good luck Blades on finding the right offensive threat u guys need badly, i see alot of 3-2/2-1 wins coming in this season but really whats wrong with playing playoff type games all season long.

[Rye]

It just seems some Blades fans are putting the wagon before the horse. hehe

That's what fans do, you have hope and expectations for your team, especially a team like the Blades who have had regular season success in the last couple of years. It would be pretty silly for me, as a fan, to say "the Blades won't win this year, they aren't good enough in any aspect."

This is hockey, anything can happen. Perfect recent example are the Philadelphia Flyers ... did you think they were a championship team when they just squeaked into the playoffs by beating NYR in a shootout? Just saying ...

[lordstanley]

I will say there playing a piss poor effort vs A CRAPPY lETHBRIDGE TEAM TONIGHTafter losing against Moose Jaw as well we may not be as good as we thought we were

[lordstanley]

Stolen win gotta love it though:clap:

[lostsheep]

Sloppy play for sure, and still need more shots. Im not sure where Hockey Spy is from but we have a contender right now. Sure we still need that true goal scorer, but all teams dream for the next sniper. Steady growth by the youngsters, through solid coaching, and a good pick up along the way and we are there. Maybe not # 1, but top 3 for sure. Any team can get beat on any given night, its the next couple games you look at to see if they learned thier lesson. After tonight it may still be sinking in but 2 points none the less. Keep cheering and showing up for the games, the season is long and sure to be a good one.:groovy:
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[Steveo34]

Comments on one of the rare losses...I already hate this hockeyspy dude.