NHL 2021: I Pledge Allegiance to Gritty

[Slap Shot]

For the first time in forever the Wild are not only not the most boring team to watch, but finally have offensive talent and are fun to watch. Kirill the Thrill, Greenway, Eriksson Ek, Fiala, Dumba, Kahkonen... However their power play has been more of a power outage all season.

[state of hockey]

For the first time in forever the Wild are not only not the most boring team to watch, but finally have offensive talent and are fun to watch. Kirill the Thrill, Greenway, Eriksson Ek, Fiala, Dumba, Kahkonen... However their power play has been more of a power outage all season.

Also can't win a face off to save their lives it seems. But agreed very fun to watch recently.

[Fighting Sioux 23]

The Isles keep piling up points! They now have taken 21 of the 22 possible points in their last 11 games, and lead the East Division. Now, if there were only a way we could have it work out that we play Buffalo each round of the Playoffs, and I like our chances to win the Cup! : - P

[mookie1995]

Speaking of..... pens only have 6 games left vs the sabres

[Kepler]

The Isles keep piling up points! They now have taken 21 of the 22 possible points in their last 11 games, and lead the East Division. Now, if there were only a way we could have it work out that we play Buffalo each round of the Playoffs, and I like our chances to win the Cup! : - P

You may be the only Sioux / Isles fan. How did that happen?

[Kepler]

The Isles keep piling up points! They now have taken 21 of the 22 possible points in their last 11 games, and lead the East Division. Now, if there were only a way we could have it work out that we play Buffalo each round of the Playoffs, and I like our chances to win the Cup! : - P

Isles are 12-2 at home, 6-8 on the road. Tampa, Florida, and Toronto are each about the same home and away.

We may have a Seahawks problem.

Speaking of, hey Jim -- are the T-Birds going to continue after the Kraken start? I hope so, it would really suck to lose them in the W.

Also: we will be sharing a home rink this Spring in lovely Kent.

[Slap Shot]

Eff the Isles!!

No not really. It's hard to hold a 40 year-old grudge against one of the greatest and most fun to watch dynasties in history even if they dismantled my childhood dreams in only 5 games.

[Fighting Sioux 23]

You may be the only Sioux / Isles fan. How did that happen?

A few reasons:

1. Growing up in North Dakota, the Sioux were the bigger deal than any NHL team, so I didn't have a strong allegiance to any of the "local" teams (read: Winnipeg Jets and Minnesota North Stars);
2. The Islanders were frequently on CBC, which was where I typically watched professional hockey growing up, so I saw them more than any of the "local" teams;
3. Our local bubble hockey table featured the Islanders (and the North Stars);
4. I loved the Islanders jerseys; and
5. Bryan Trottier was my favorite player growing up.

I'm also a distant relative of Bob Nystrom, but to be fair, I didn't know that when I was growing up and forming my team allegiances. : )

[Kepler]

3. Our local bubble hockey table featured the Islanders (and the North Stars)

This is funny because I had a bubble hockey table growing up where the two teams were the Islanders and the North Stars, and I think it is one of the reasons I fell in love with their sweaters.

[Kepler]

Eff the Isles!!

No not really. It's hard to hold a 40 year-old grudge against one of the greatest and most fun to watch dynasties in history even if they dismantled my childhood dreams in only 5 games.

The North Stars were the only one of the four teams we beat in the finals who I liked. I hated the Flyers, considered the Canucks a fake team, and respected but was also terrified of the Oilers. But the North Stars, and Minneapolis as a concept, were charming to me.

Growing up outside of NYC, I thought of these cities as all kind of Land of Oz fascinating and romantic. I'm not joking:

Montreal
Hartford (I know)
Minneapolis
Denver
Seattle
San Francisco

[state of hockey]

This is funny because I had a bubble hockey table growing up where the two teams were the Islanders and the North Stars, and I think it is one of the reasons I fell in love with their sweaters.

Was a fantastic jersey matchup that's for sure.

[Kepler]

Was a fantastic jersey matchup that's for sure.

My favorite jersey matchup was the North Stars vs the Atlanta Flames.

[Fighting Sioux 23]

Isles are 12-2 at home, 6-8 on the road. Tampa, Florida, and Toronto are each about the same home and away.

We may have a Seahawks problem.

It's actually 12-0-2 at home, but yeah, it may be no coincidence that the Isles recent great run has occurred at the same time that they haven't left the NYC metro area since February 20th. Their upcoming trip to Washington will be their first game outside the NYC metro area in almost a month. Looking at it a step further, inside the NYC metro area, the Isles are 16-2-2. Outside the metro...2-4-2 (with the only victories coming against Buffalo...who we've beaten something likely 800 straight times). Maybe we should lobby for a postseason bubble in New York?

[Fighting Sioux 23]

Was a fantastic jersey matchup that's for sure.

What's your take on the North Stars' themed Wild jerseys?

[Fighting Sioux 23]

Eff the Isles!!

No not really. It's hard to hold a 40 year-old grudge against one of the greatest and most fun to watch dynasties in history even if they dismantled my childhood dreams in only 5 games.

Yeah, those Islanders' squads were something else.

As someone who really hated the Penguins in the early-1990s, I was full-on the North Stars' bandwagon in 1991. Them coming up short was a disappointment that would only be relieved by the '93 Isles playoff run.