NCMountaineer

Caps have been impressing me so far this season TBH. So far it seems like this is the deepest team they've iced since 19, though we'll see how long the good version of PLD decides to keep coming to the rink.

I may want to start betting on some of this shit (not really). Told my dad before the game it was going to be 4-2 Canes with Ovechkin putting one in, sure enough.

Doesn't help that they're playing Carolina tonight, who's just stupid fast and somehow got faster this off-season, but it feels like collectively that they've lost a couple steps.

always seems to be up early in the season until teams lock in defensively, but the reduction in the goalie equipment size a couple years back has been making a noticeable difference in numbers even with that being the case. man, OT in that Canes-Oilers game last night is how OT in this format should be. Just end to end action with some great stops.

I feel this. Even into my late 30s I was still eating and drinking like some idiot college kid, just not nearly as much on the food front. Once I started to take things seriously (gym 4+ days a week) and gradually cut back on the drinking (I'm doing at most 2-3 beers a week now) the weight started to come off fast. Hit below 180 for the first time since college just this past Saturday from a high in the 240s.

yeah, as much as people are thinking my boys (Canes) are going to take a step back this year when people talk about missing the playoffs entirely I'm like "bro, have you even looked at the rest of this division? 3rd place is as bad as it's likely to get unless something ridiculous happens". Isles could goalie their way into a Wild Card spot again but I think that's their upside. Everyone else outside the top 3 is either rebuilding or needs to rebuild. Central is ridiculous - everyone but Chicago has a realistic chance this year at being a playoff team. I'm not sold on any of the rebuilding Atlantic teams taking that next step yet. Detroit's probably the closest but not sold on that goaltending. Pacific is almost as predictable as the Metro.

nice pick by Trotter. The pain continues for the Pokes.

A bit this and a bit that they might not have considered the Ponies a threat. Some of the encounters I've had with them make the worst I've gotten from Pitt or Hokie fans look classy by comparison.

lol, would have thought that the case a while back. they look flat out one-dimensional with a bad line. that's basically asking for disaster.

I was expecting this one to be ugly... just didn't think we would be the ones on the good side of it.

that's the major question. From what I've been told by a Montana grad there is a fund already in place should they decide to make the move up but as always the question is the political will of the admin there. No idea on the other 3. edit: didn't see LTbear's reply but that definitely checks out.

Interestingly I'd say the one plus about no longer being in the same conference is that when we play VT or Pitt it's no longer buried under an absolute deluge of other big matchups. You get the Backyard Brawl or Black Diamond in week 2 or 3 and it's THE game in that time slot as far as I'm concerned, most of the matchups in those weeks are basically worth fuck all outside the one or two UT-Michigan tier matchups. So when you see a rivalry game like that on the schedule that early in the year you know you're going to be getting a ton of eyes watching that normally wouldn't give a damn. But that's basically the only positive to being in a different conference from our traditional rivals. Even getting the game on the schedule most years can be a chore.

The Sun Belt played things perfectly in the last round - building a regional conference around teams that were making their way up from FCS as strong brands already at that level and keeping things within an established footprint, not chasing markets but chasing value with teams of similar competitive level and background makes for an entertaining product rather than chasing markets where the market already has established teams they care about and couldn't give a damn about the team being added. Using that line of thinking I honestly think the new MWC would be better off approaching the two Montanas, NDSU, and SDSU about making the move to FBS from FCS to round out their numbers but I don't think they're willing to make that move even though it would be a more compelling product.

Yeah we kinda don't give a shit if that's what we'd be stuck with, it's mostly just a numbers game. We'd have been stuck either way outside of UConn being the team that was brought in during the last round instead of UH. I think most of our base is assuming/anticipating the next round bringing in Louisville, Pitt, VT, and NCSU presuming the SEC doesn't take the last two there.

The bolded is certainly a plus, some of the stuff that was going on back in the Big East days when I was there was beyond ugly. I'll have to see about the 5th though at the least I should be able to make it over the night before.