ESPN Power Rankings

[MexicanChannel]

http://sports.espn.go.com/nhl/powerranking

We're number 5!

"The new rules suit this fast, offensive-minded team. Saku Koivu is picking up his game with 4G in his last 5 games. But the Habs will be tested this week, with games against Philly, Ottawa and the Rangers."

And the Leafs are #6, but it says "Maybe we're giving them too much credit."

:ghg:

[simonus]

nice. ESPN really doesn't have much in the way of hockey bias... or knowledge. Sure they pump up the Wings, Avs, and Rangers, but thats purely a marketing issue (helps that two of those teams are consistently good).

[Tony_]

The Fourth Period also ranked the Habs fifth this week.

[~moeman]

Pretty (funny)sad when the 4th is more rebutable than tsn.

[kaos]

Its too bad these rankings don't in some well help the Habs win hockey games

[~moeman]

They ain't helpin' da leaf much neither.

[Howie_Morenz]

In my world Habs are:

#1

[thehabbit]

the Toronto Globe and Mail newspaper ranked the habs 5th as well:

"All those one goal wins still count in the standings"

and the leafs 10th

"We always knew Eric Lindros could do it, if he just stayed healthy."

these rankings seem very accurate with the top ten looking like this

1 ott

2 nash

3 van

4 det

5 mon

6 l.a.

7 min

8 buf

9 nyr

10 tor

i believe this is a good list for ranking teams as they are playing right now, as for any more than that, we shall see.....

:hlogo::hlogo::hlogo::/)

:ghg:

[simonus]

http://v2.hockeybuzz.com/blogworld/blog.as...ger=32&post=472

interesting alternative ranking system

[Mont Royale]

Originally posted by simonus

http://v2.hockeybuzz.com/blogworld/blog.as...ger=32&post=472

interesting alternative ranking system

Hmmm... rankings based on the rankings of others. So lazy.

A rather unnecessary reference to Perezhogin's 'incident', to boot.

[shortcat1]

Here's a post on TSN.ca about this stuff.

It's about a guy who writes to Scott Cullen and expresses what we've been expressing here for a while. It also includes Cullen's response.

****************************************

"There must be some mistake. You've got both Toronto and Boston ahead of Montreal. Not only does Montreal have a better record then both teams, they outplayed both of them head to head in their 2 meetings. Montreal won both games against Boston and split with Toronto (although they outplayed them both times). You reallly must have something against the Habs. - Jason Ehrhardt, Grand Cayman, Cayman Islands

***********

Jason, I have nothing against the Habs. I'm also not measuring who outplayed who head-to-head because I have to do this for all 30 teams. As much hockey as I watch, I still can't watch every team play every game, so I rely on statistics to back up my observations. So, the net result of the Canadiens going head-to-head with the Leafs was pretty much a wash -- each team won by a goal in the other's barn. The difference of two points in the standings is just not compelling to me on its own and when I look at the other stats, I see the Leafs with more guys scoring. Maybe that won't continue, but I'll worry about dropping them when the goals stop coming. As for the Bruins, they moved up because of Joe Thornton's return from his back injury and, while I know the Habs won both head-to-head meetings, the Bruins were without Nick Boynton for one of those games and Thornton for the other. With those two back in the line-up, I would have liked the Bruins' chances in the next matchup. In any case, after a couple losses and a Raycroft injury, the Bruins aren't ahead of the Canadiens right now. - SC

****************************************

I don't know if Jason Ehrhardt is a member of this community but he certainly belongs here.

Whatcha think?

:hlogo::ghg::hlogo:

[Edited on 2005/10/29 by shortcat1]

[Dalhabs]

And we were without Zednik for both games but that appearently doesnt count.

Toronto Sports Network is still the name.

[JLP]

I notice on the new ESPN rankings four of the top six teams are Canadian.

As for Cullins and Toronto Sports Network Leaf-centric rankings -- a good letter and his response sounds something like a rationalization to me...

[simonus]

well, it goes back to a classic problem with journalists recently. Better to publish an opinion or observation than a fact - you don't have to publish corrections for observations.

[Ribeiro]

ESPN really doesn't have much in the way of hockey bias... or knowledge.

Just because they don't broadcast hockey anymore due to the NHL's horrific ratings doesn't mean they lack hockey knowledge. It just means they realize that the NBA and NFL are more profitable for them.

[Lister110]

Originally posted by shortcat1

Cullen's response.

Jason, I have nothing against the Habs. I'm also not measuring who outplayed who head-to-head because I have to do this for all 30 teams. As much hockey as I watch, I still can't watch every team play every game, so I rely on statistics to back up my observations. So, the net result of the Canadiens going head-to-head with the Leafs was pretty much a wash -- each team won by a goal in the other's barn. The difference of two points in the standings is just not compelling to me on its own and when I look at the other stats, I see the Leafs with more guys scoring. Maybe that won't continue, but I'll worry about dropping them when the goals stop coming. As for the Bruins, they moved up because of Joe Thornton's return from his back injury and, while I know the Habs won both head-to-head meetings, the Bruins were without Nick Boynton for one of those games and Thornton for the other. With those two back in the line-up, I would have liked the Bruins' chances in the next matchup. In any case, after a couple losses and a Raycroft injury, the Bruins aren't ahead of the Canadiens right now. - SC

:hlogo::ghg::hlogo:

First these Power Rankings mean nothing because even if they are true the way we have so many divisional games means that power teams will not all make the playoffs anyway. And isn't that the point

This Cullen is so full of shit. He claims to not look at special considerations, like how the teams actually play(?), but makes them on account of Toronto running up the score against Atlanta. The only stats he's using from the looks of it are goals scored. Thats why the return of Thorton is weighed so heavily. He considers Boynton not being in the line up and forgets Zednik. Plain and short this guys way of collecting stats is arbitrary and aimed to deny Montreal recognition while boosting Toronto and Boston. This is TSN's target audience and this is who he sells to. One might easily ask why PPK's, goaltending, shots on net are not included in his stats. above all games won and in Montreal's case without overtime or the loser point in overtime which Toronto likes so well.

[Edited on 2005/10/30 by Lister110]