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Post by dannycater on Jul 19, 2023 2:39:11 GMT
I'm going to put Michael Thelven in the "what IF" category. Bruins-defenseman-bad-knees complex. If his cranky knees don't happen. Thelvin would have better years than his 88' stats. Whenever he hit the ice I would watch him skate the whole shift. Another "what IF" is Bobby Carpenter in 91'. He was having such a good year that season. Before shattering his knee cap. Always believed the Bruins would have gotten past the Pingu that year. I looked up Thelven when I was doing the not credited and I couldn't believe how short his NHL career was...I thought he was a terrific defenseman....not to be confused with Mats Thelin.
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Post by kelvana33 on Jul 19, 2023 14:57:41 GMT
I'm going to put Michael Thelven in the "what IF" category. Bruins-defenseman-bad-knees complex. If his cranky knees don't happen. Thelvin would have better years than his 88' stats. Whenever he hit the ice I would watch him skate the whole shift. Another "what IF" is Bobby Carpenter in 91'. He was having such a good year that season. Before shattering his knee cap. Always believed the Bruins would have gotten past the Pingu that year. Like the Carpenter pick, I'll throw in Jonathan Girard. Saw him play a pre-season game vs the Rangers, looked pretty smooth.
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Post by thanx4memORRies on Jul 19, 2023 22:27:54 GMT
Joe Thornton
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Post by thanx4memORRies on Jul 19, 2023 22:38:41 GMT
Bruins lost to the Isles in the semi. Bossy remains one of my all-time favourite players who never played for Boston - on the non-Bruin Mount Rushmore of my favourites. Islanders went on to pummel the Oilers. What I remember most about that series is that the Oilers came into the Finals 11-1 and finished it 11-5 for the playoffs. Imagine that. You are cutting through the playoffs like a 21 yr old Cuban pitcher whose birth certificate says he's 13 at the Little League World Series goes through opposing lineups. Jets! Gone! Flames! Gone! Hawks! See ya! Beat the Jets in three straight by a combines score of 14-9, then Calgary in 5 by a combined score of 35-13 then Chicago in 4 by a combined score of 25-11. A combined score of 74-33 in 12 games or 6.17 to 2.75 as an average score. The Isles held them to 6 goals in 4 games. Shut them out in game one. No OT...not even a one goal game. Leading scorer that playoffs for the Isles? Bob Bourne with 28 points in 20 games. I mean, there was some kid named Gitzby or Grzelcyk or something who had 38 in 16 games to lead the playoffs as a whole, but yeah... Bob Bourne. Too bad Bossy proved to be such a whiner. But yeah in the early 80s he was the best player not named Gretzky Bossy was the greatest sniper in history but Bryan Trottier was the best player in the league during the Islanders’ reign, imo…. Possibly the best two-way player in history also and who didn’t shy from the physical play either….
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Post by jmwalters on Jul 19, 2023 22:39:48 GMT
Too bad Bossy proved to be such a whiner. But yeah in the early 80s he was the best player not named Gretzky Bossy was the greatest sniper in history but Bryan Trottier was the best player in the league during the Islanders’ reign, imo…. Possibly the best two-way player in history also and who didn’t shy from the physical play either…. Can’t argue with that
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Post by dannycater on Jul 19, 2023 22:53:05 GMT
Trottier was the original Bergeron. Or Bergeron is today's version of Trottier.
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Post by RichHillOntario on Jul 19, 2023 22:56:33 GMT
One of those crashin' Crowder brothers, specifically Keith not Bruce. Never missed a chance to throw the body or throw down as his 177 PIMS in the '85/'86 season will attest. Add that to his stat line for that year of 38 goals, 46 assists for 84 points. Not bad. His numbers dipped steadily after that peak but still sank 22 goals the following season. He had double digit goal totals for the next few years but never again matched those 38 and by 1990, he was a King.
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Post by dannycater on Jul 19, 2023 22:58:21 GMT
One of those crashin' Crowder brothers, specifically Keith not Bruce. Never missed a chance to throw the body or throw down as his 177 PIMS in the '85/'86 season will attest. Add that to his stat line of 38 goals, 46 assists for 84 points. Not bad. His numbers steadily dipped after that year but still sank 22 goals the following season. Keith Crowder was in a lot of ways the bridge from one B's generation to another. I loved him and I he was a true B..in every sense of B's Nation.
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Post by thanx4memORRies on Jul 20, 2023 0:58:32 GMT
Don’t know if he’s been mentioned but Charlie Simmer averaged 30+ goals for the B’S during the mid 80s despite having health issues….
Had back-to-back 50+ goal seasons with the Kings prior to joining the B’S, including scoring 50 in 51 games one year….
Charlie could also score off the ice having been married to a Playboy cover girl….
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Post by thanx4memORRies on Jul 20, 2023 1:17:25 GMT
My under appreciated B’S player of the 70s has to be Gregg Sheppard…. Three straight 30-goal seasons and it would’ve been four if not for an injury in his last season with the B’S….
Two of those seasons saw him playing behind Jean Ratelle and Peter McNab as third center….
Sheppard was also a superb penalty killer….
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Post by dannycater on Jul 20, 2023 13:52:52 GMT
My under appreciated B’S player of the 70s has to be Gregg Sheppard…. Three straight 30-goal seasons and it would’ve been four if not for an injury in his last season with the B’S…. Two of those seasons saw him playing behind Jean Ratelle and Peter McNab as third center…. Sheppard was also a superb penalty killer…. Great job on bringing on both Sheppard and Simmer, who was electric that 50-goal year for B's and was part of the great Triple Crown Line in LA of him, Marcel Dionne and Dave Taylor. Sheppard was terrific forechecker and solid 200-foot forward.
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Post by dannycater on Jul 20, 2023 13:56:53 GMT
Liked Jumbo Joe more than others in here. I think what tainted him the most was there just was a lot of hate seeing him with the Sharks for years and for them not advancing more in many playoff years when they had great regular season...oh shit, like the B's now!...and of course WAY TOO MUCH grief he got for not doing anything in the famous 7-game series choke v. Habs in 04. He had broken ribs (Bergeron and Tkazcuk found ways to produce with bad injuries, but in all honesty I'm guessing Joe's ribs were making it difficult to breathe, let alone skate--and it showed in the series), but B's fans threw him to the wolves, then he got ceremoniously traded for sorry not much. He was cultivated to become a high point producer and he was--just more so for a long career with San Jose.
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Post by thanx4memORRies on Jul 20, 2023 17:40:57 GMT
Liked Jumbo Joe more than others in here. I think what tainted him the most was there just was a lot of hate seeing him with the Sharks for years and for them not advancing more in many playoff years when they had great regular season...oh shit, like the B's now!...and of course WAY TOO MUCH grief he got for not doing anything in the famous 7-game series choke v. Habs in 04. He had broken ribs (Bergeron and Tkazcuk found ways to produce with bad injuries, but in all honesty I'm guessing Joe's ribs were making it difficult to breathe, let alone skate--and it showed in the series), but B's fans threw him to the wolves, then he got ceremoniously traded for sorry not much. He was cultivated to become a high point producer and he was--just more so for a long career with San Jose. “Not much” would’ve been more than what the B’S actually got for Joe…. Here are a few more high-point producers to never win anything, the mantra used to try and derail Joe’s distinguished career…. Marcel Dionne, Gilbert Perreault, Norm Ullman, Jean Ratelle, Peter Stastny, Pat Lafontaine, Dale Hawerchuk, Bernie Federko, Adam Oates, Darryl Sittler…. All hall of famers btw…. Joe will become one too…. And as soon as he becomes eligible….
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Post by sandogbrewin on Jul 20, 2023 18:02:06 GMT
Liked Jumbo Joe more than others in here. I think what tainted him the most was there just was a lot of hate seeing him with the Sharks for years and for them not advancing more in many playoff years when they had great regular season...oh shit, like the B's now!...and of course WAY TOO MUCH grief he got for not doing anything in the famous 7-game series choke v. Habs in 04. He had broken ribs (Bergeron and Tkazcuk found ways to produce with bad injuries, but in all honesty I'm guessing Joe's ribs were making it difficult to breathe, let alone skate--and it showed in the series), but B's fans threw him to the wolves, then he got ceremoniously traded for sorry not much. He was cultivated to become a high point producer and he was--just more so for a long career with San Jose. I've never soley blamed Joe Thornton for the 04' collapse. But I'll blame the Sharks for those crap goaltenders they had.
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Post by bookboy007 on Jul 20, 2023 19:24:07 GMT
You go to hell. You go to hell and you DIE. What, isn't this the thread for South Park quotes? Sorry, my bad.
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Post by The OC on Jul 20, 2023 19:52:48 GMT
Liked Jumbo Joe more than others in here. I think what tainted him the most was there just was a lot of hate seeing him with the Sharks for years and for them not advancing more in many playoff years when they had great regular season...oh shit, like the B's now!...and of course WAY TOO MUCH grief he got for not doing anything in the famous 7-game series choke v. Habs in 04. He had broken ribs (Bergeron and Tkazcuk found ways to produce with bad injuries, but in all honesty I'm guessing Joe's ribs were making it difficult to breathe, let alone skate--and it showed in the series), but B's fans threw him to the wolves, then he got ceremoniously traded for sorry not much. He was cultivated to become a high point producer and he was--just more so for a long career with San Jose. I've never soley blamed Joe Thornton for the 04' collapse. But I'll blame the Sharks for those crap goaltenders they had. Joe had broken ribs, it wasn't his fault. If he didn't get injured in game 81, his legacy could have been so much different.
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Post by The OC on Jul 20, 2023 19:54:28 GMT
The Joey T story is another aspect of the Jason Allison coulda' been. If BOS kept JA, I think it would have been great for Joe. Jason stays as captain and #1C, and JT gets to be the best #2C in modern NHL history. It would have suited his strengths and weaknesses so much better.
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Post by bookboy007 on Jul 20, 2023 19:59:50 GMT
Liked Jumbo Joe more than others in here. I think what tainted him the most was there just was a lot of hate seeing him with the Sharks for years and for them not advancing more in many playoff years when they had great regular season...oh shit, like the B's now!...and of course WAY TOO MUCH grief he got for not doing anything in the famous 7-game series choke v. Habs in 04. He had broken ribs (Bergeron and Tkazcuk found ways to produce with bad injuries, but in all honesty I'm guessing Joe's ribs were making it difficult to breathe, let alone skate--and it showed in the series), but B's fans threw him to the wolves, then he got ceremoniously traded for sorry not much. He was cultivated to become a high point producer and he was--just more so for a long career with San Jose. Frank Thomas was known as 'The Big Hurt.' Robert Horry was "Big Shot Bob". Joe Thornton was "The Big Excuse." No one disputes that Joe Thornton was one of the most talented passers and most skilled big men in the history of the game. But it's hard to fathom how little his regular season point totals amounted to in terms of playoff success over a 24 year career. You need a lot of excuses not to have any of the blame taint St. Joe of Not My Fault. Career .898 points per game in the regular season, but just .717 in the playoffs. That's not really unusual, right? Scoring in the playoffs is hard. 187 playoff games, 32 goals. That's full 1/3rd fewer goals/game than his RS totals. Trivia question - how many goals did JTS score in his best playoff for goals, and what season did that come in? The answer is 4 in his final year with the Sharts. He had 10 points in 19 games that year playing 3rd line and second PP. He never topped 3 in any other playoff season. He was a -36 in the playoffs for his career. He scored more than 10 points at even strength in the playoffs just twice. He had 18 points, and just six goals, in 35 playoff games with the Bruins, and he was -10 in that time, finishing above water in only one playoff year, and that was +1. As a centre, he won more than 47.2% of his draws just one playoff season in Boston. It isn't just that he never won a Cup. It's that he was very clear with anyone who would listen that he was the man right up until it was time to apportion blame for another playoff dud. Great talent, got paid like a kingpin, never played like one when it mattered. What's his record in the Olympics? Oh. Right. He was never selected. World Cup? Oh.... Huh. I have long made the case that Mike Keenan was right about Joe. He had the talent to be as good as he wanted to be. When you say that about a highly competitive player, you expect them to hear "I can be the best player in the league!" and he was the year he was dealt because he wanted to be - to stick it to the Bruins. But his give a shit meter dropped from there to "I want to be this good because this is the level where I get lots of ass-kissing and praise and salary dollars, but fewer bruises, welts and injuries. Let's see if this is enough for us to win. If it's not, I probably still look good enough to say I did my job and people will point at our goaltending/defense/coach before me." The biggest indicator of this for me is the drop in his goal production and shooting percentage. Joe Thornton could shoot the puck. He had 163 goals in 477 games between the start of his second year and the end of his time in Boston - good for better than a goal every 3 games or an average of 27 goals a season. As a Bruin, his s% was over 15%. As a Shart, he had 250 goals in over 1100 games, less than a goal every 4 games, or about 18.6 goals/game per 82 games. His s% dropped 2%, but even more to the point, he stopped shooting. 1.7 shots/game as a Shark, but under 100 shots every year after 15-16. After his rookie year when he barely saw the ice, he shot 2.25 times a game even though he wasn't the #1C for a lot of that time. Joe Thornton stopped taking the puck hard to the net. He stopped trying to get inside. He was predictable, and so containable if not stoppable. He never had an answer for the Saku Koivus of the world who knew how to get on top of him in ways where size didn't matter and you were mostly just concerned he would make a pass. Those who defend him have created the straw dog that it's all about his teams' lack of playoff success and no ring. I think those who were terribly disappointed by him think those are symptoms, not the reason.
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Post by dannycater on Jul 20, 2023 20:36:37 GMT
Liked Jumbo Joe more than others in here. I think what tainted him the most was there just was a lot of hate seeing him with the Sharks for years and for them not advancing more in many playoff years when they had great regular season...oh shit, like the B's now!...and of course WAY TOO MUCH grief he got for not doing anything in the famous 7-game series choke v. Habs in 04. He had broken ribs (Bergeron and Tkazcuk found ways to produce with bad injuries, but in all honesty I'm guessing Joe's ribs were making it difficult to breathe, let alone skate--and it showed in the series), but B's fans threw him to the wolves, then he got ceremoniously traded for sorry not much. He was cultivated to become a high point producer and he was--just more so for a long career with San Jose. Frank Thomas was known as 'The Big Hurt.' Robert Horry was "Big Shot Bob". Joe Thornton was "The Big Excuse." No one disputes that Joe Thornton was one of the most talented passers and most skilled big men in the history of the game. But it's hard to fathom how little his regular season point totals amounted to in terms of playoff success over a 24 year career. You need a lot of excuses not to have any of the blame taint St. Joe of Not My Fault. Career .898 points per game in the regular season, but just .717 in the playoffs. That's not really unusual, right? Scoring in the playoffs is hard. 187 playoff games, 32 goals. That's full 1/3rd fewer goals/game than his RS totals. Trivia question - how many goals did JTS score in his best playoff for goals, and what season did that come in? The answer is 4 in his final year with the Sharts. He had 10 points in 19 games that year playing 3rd line and second PP. He never topped 3 in any other playoff season. He was a -36 in the playoffs for his career. He scored more than 10 points at even strength in the playoffs just twice. He had 18 points, and just six goals, in 35 playoff games with the Bruins, and he was -10 in that time, finishing above water in only one playoff year, and that was +1. As a centre, he won more than 47.2% of his draws just one playoff season in Boston. It isn't just that he never won a Cup. It's that he was very clear with anyone who would listen that he was the man right up until it was time to apportion blame for another playoff dud. Great talent, got paid like a kingpin, never played like one when it mattered. What's his record in the Olympics? Oh. Right. He was never selected. World Cup? Oh.... Huh. I have long made the case that Mike Keenan was right about Joe. He had the talent to be as good as he wanted to be. When you say that about a highly competitive player, you expect them to hear "I can be the best player in the league!" and he was the year he was dealt because he wanted to be - to stick it to the Bruins. But his give a shit meter dropped from there to "I want to be this good because this is the level where I get lots of ass-kissing and praise and salary dollars, but fewer bruises, welts and injuries. Let's see if this is enough for us to win. If it's not, I probably still look good enough to say I did my job and people will point at our goaltending/defense/coach before me." The biggest indicator of this for me is the drop in his goal production and shooting percentage. Joe Thornton could shoot the puck. He had 163 goals in 477 games between the start of his second year and the end of his time in Boston - good for better than a goal every 3 games or an average of 27 goals a season. As a Bruin, his s% was over 15%. As a Shart, he had 250 goals in over 1100 games, less than a goal every 4 games, or about 18.6 goals/game per 82 games. His s% dropped 2%, but even more to the point, he stopped shooting. 1.7 shots/game as a Shark, but under 100 shots every year after 15-16. After his rookie year when he barely saw the ice, he shot 2.25 times a game even though he wasn't the #1C for a lot of that time. Joe Thornton stopped taking the puck hard to the net. He stopped trying to get inside. He was predictable, and so containable if not stoppable. He never had an answer for the Saku Koivus of the world who knew how to get on top of him in ways where size didn't matter and you were mostly just concerned he would make a pass. Those who defend him have created the straw dog that it's all about his teams' lack of playoff success and no ring. I think those who were terribly disappointed by him think those are symptoms, not the reason. Yeah, he sucked, I'm sorry the B's got Marco Sturm to replace his weak-ass play. Probably was a steal now that I look at that trade.
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Post by sandogbrewin on Jul 20, 2023 20:42:35 GMT
I've never soley blamed Joe Thornton for the 04' collapse. But I'll blame the Sharks for those crap goaltenders they had. Joe had broken ribs, it wasn't his fault. If he didn't get injured in game 81, his legacy could have been so much different. Harry still had a bunch of pull back then. It's rumored that he consulted with Jacobs on Joe. But still no excuse when GMs came out n said they didn't know Thorton was available. Oh MOC if only Harry left you in Detroit and kept AL Secord. Bruins management during the lockout was awful. They let too much talent go. Cause MOC was told there would be plenty of talent once the UFA opened for business. Sure Zhamnov and Leetch were the answer. Letting Rolston and Knuble walk was so dumb. Thornton lost a ton of support. But got the blame.
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Post by bookboy007 on Jul 20, 2023 21:33:06 GMT
Liked Jumbo Joe more than others in here. I think what tainted him the most was there just was a lot of hate seeing him with the Sharks for years and for them not advancing more in many playoff years when they had great regular season...oh shit, like the B's now!...and of course WAY TOO MUCH grief he got for not doing anything in the famous 7-game series choke v. Habs in 04. He had broken ribs (Bergeron and Tkazcuk found ways to produce with bad injuries, but in all honesty I'm guessing Joe's ribs were making it difficult to breathe, let alone skate--and it showed in the series), but B's fans threw him to the wolves, then he got ceremoniously traded for sorry not much. He was cultivated to become a high point producer and he was--just more so for a long career with San Jose. I've never soley blamed Joe Thornton for the 04' collapse. But I'll blame the Sharks for those crap goaltenders they had. Crap goalies or goalies who, like JTS, played like crap in key situations? Nabokov was top six in Vezina voting 6 times in his career, and got Hart votes six times. Thornton only got Hart votes in 8 seasons, though he did win it once. Nabokov was their playoff goalie from 2006-07 to 2009-10. That's when they chose to ditch him for Cup winner Niemi, who failed them right up to the Martin Jones deal with Boston, who briefly had people thinking the Bruins traded the wrong goalie. Nabokov's first year as playoff starter during the JTS era, he had a 2.23 GAA and a .920 s%, and the second year he was 2.18 and .907. The Sharts lost to the Wings because they scored 9 goals in 6 games and lost the final two games of the series 4-1 and 2-0. The next year, they scored 11 goals in 6 games to lose to the Stars. You don't win in the playoffs by scoring less than 2 goals/game in a series. Nabokov's numbers got worse the next couple of years, but not Malcolm Subban bad. But the pattern continues. 10 goals in a six game second round loss to the Quacks the next year. 7 goals in 4 games when they got spanked by the emerging Hawk juggernaut. Their trouble in that series must have been the Hawks goalie; better sign him. Bounced by the Canucks in 5 but at least they scored 13 goals. 8 goals in 5 games losing to the Blues the next season in the first round. 10 goals in a second round 7 game series loss to the Kings. Then the next year, 13 goals in the first two games of the rematch with LA, and another 4 in the third game to go up 3-0, then 5 goals in the next 4 games. The pattern here is that a guy who gets the props as one of the game's most elite scoring talents, the guy who gets defended with his point totals and people saying he did his job? Didn't do his job leading the offense and producing goals when they count the most. Year after year, series after series, the Sharts failed to score 2 goals per game in the series where they got bounced. And he was supposed to be the straw that stirred the drink.
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Post by bookboy007 on Jul 20, 2023 21:41:39 GMT
The Joey T story is another aspect of the Jason Allison coulda' been. If BOS kept JA, I think it would have been great for Joe. Jason stays as captain and #1C, and JT gets to be the best #2C in modern NHL history. It would have suited his strengths and weaknesses so much better. I think this may well be true. Because Allison was a prick, so he would have taken zero shit from the kid with the first overall pedigree. You want my TOI? My PP TOI? Come and get it. Allison's injuries led to Thornton's breakthrough with first 60 points and then his first shot at a point/game when Allison came back. One of the things that would have done if they had both been healthy over a longer term, and the Bruins had been able to keep both, is it made Thornton be a goal scorer. His best year for goals and the only time in his career he scored more goals than assists was Allison's final year in Boston. Next year, he dropped 15 goals and barely topped 20 concentrating on feeding Billy Guerin.
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Post by bookboy007 on Jul 20, 2023 21:54:13 GMT
I've never soley blamed Joe Thornton for the 04' collapse. But I'll blame the Sharks for those crap goaltenders they had. Joe had broken ribs, it wasn't his fault. If he didn't get injured in game 81, his legacy could have been so much different. He shouldn't have played if they were so bad. He certainly shouldn't have played over 21 min in game 7. They got to game 7 without him scoring or really contributing much of anything. It's worse than just that he didn't score, it's that the guy he was up against most shifts put up 3 points against him in game 5, 2 more in game 6, and then assisted on both goals in the 2-0 clincher. Thornton was -6 in those three games (...sounds strangely familiar...). Thornton averaged 21:30 for the series. The Bruins best C in the series was Nylander, one of the guys the let get away during the lockout. Bergeron was 18 and still had 4 points. Green was a serviceable defensive C and Hilbert could have handled the 4th line duties. I have no doubt JTS was compromised, but he was good enough to go out there for 21 min a night; he wasn't ambulanced out in the middle of a third period only to return for the next game. I think your statement about his legacy here cuts both ways. It's entirely possible looking at JTS's career that the ribs weren't the only reason he went 0-fer, and if he doesn't have that excuse - if he's a fully healthy JTS throughout the series - and it changes nothing?
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Post by bookboy007 on Jul 20, 2023 21:55:24 GMT
Frank Thomas was known as 'The Big Hurt.' Robert Horry was "Big Shot Bob". Joe Thornton was "The Big Excuse." No one disputes that Joe Thornton was one of the most talented passers and most skilled big men in the history of the game. But it's hard to fathom how little his regular season point totals amounted to in terms of playoff success over a 24 year career. You need a lot of excuses not to have any of the blame taint St. Joe of Not My Fault. Career .898 points per game in the regular season, but just .717 in the playoffs. That's not really unusual, right? Scoring in the playoffs is hard. 187 playoff games, 32 goals. That's full 1/3rd fewer goals/game than his RS totals. Trivia question - how many goals did JTS score in his best playoff for goals, and what season did that come in? The answer is 4 in his final year with the Sharts. He had 10 points in 19 games that year playing 3rd line and second PP. He never topped 3 in any other playoff season. He was a -36 in the playoffs for his career. He scored more than 10 points at even strength in the playoffs just twice. He had 18 points, and just six goals, in 35 playoff games with the Bruins, and he was -10 in that time, finishing above water in only one playoff year, and that was +1. As a centre, he won more than 47.2% of his draws just one playoff season in Boston. It isn't just that he never won a Cup. It's that he was very clear with anyone who would listen that he was the man right up until it was time to apportion blame for another playoff dud. Great talent, got paid like a kingpin, never played like one when it mattered. What's his record in the Olympics? Oh. Right. He was never selected. World Cup? Oh.... Huh. I have long made the case that Mike Keenan was right about Joe. He had the talent to be as good as he wanted to be. When you say that about a highly competitive player, you expect them to hear "I can be the best player in the league!" and he was the year he was dealt because he wanted to be - to stick it to the Bruins. But his give a shit meter dropped from there to "I want to be this good because this is the level where I get lots of ass-kissing and praise and salary dollars, but fewer bruises, welts and injuries. Let's see if this is enough for us to win. If it's not, I probably still look good enough to say I did my job and people will point at our goaltending/defense/coach before me." The biggest indicator of this for me is the drop in his goal production and shooting percentage. Joe Thornton could shoot the puck. He had 163 goals in 477 games between the start of his second year and the end of his time in Boston - good for better than a goal every 3 games or an average of 27 goals a season. As a Bruin, his s% was over 15%. As a Shart, he had 250 goals in over 1100 games, less than a goal every 4 games, or about 18.6 goals/game per 82 games. His s% dropped 2%, but even more to the point, he stopped shooting. 1.7 shots/game as a Shark, but under 100 shots every year after 15-16. After his rookie year when he barely saw the ice, he shot 2.25 times a game even though he wasn't the #1C for a lot of that time. Joe Thornton stopped taking the puck hard to the net. He stopped trying to get inside. He was predictable, and so containable if not stoppable. He never had an answer for the Saku Koivus of the world who knew how to get on top of him in ways where size didn't matter and you were mostly just concerned he would make a pass. Those who defend him have created the straw dog that it's all about his teams' lack of playoff success and no ring. I think those who were terribly disappointed by him think those are symptoms, not the reason. Yeah, he sucked, I'm sorry the B's got Marco Sturm to replace his weak-ass play. Probably was a steal now that I look at that trade. This is the common dodge of people being asked to look at the reality behind the numbers on JTS. "Oh, well I guess he sucked! and the trade was good!" I said neither of those things. You're arguing with your houseplants again.
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Post by sandogbrewin on Jul 20, 2023 22:58:01 GMT
Defending Nabokov that's a laugh. Posted a .750, 2 .907s, an .850 and yah he gets one .920. Then the Islanders give him a shot...what does he put up ? .842 (the Islanders couldn't score right ?)
Hilariously awful!!!
Comically flailing spin.
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