verification word = karl [3 TPE]

Dynasty in the making? You better believe it baybee. I believe it's a little bit of all the items listed. From a management stand point San Francisco did a very good job not only drafting, but retaining those players through some pretty rough seasons before they hit their current stride. When the time was right the unloaded future assets to bolster their growing core and it's worked out perfectly. From a coaching stand point they saw what they had and got the most out of it. It's lucky to be good in this league, but at the same time you need to be good to receive that luck and the coaching staff took the time to build a quality line up each season. Lastly you can't ignore what the players have done. All top 6 forwards have amassed huge pools of TPE the the 3rd line is no slouch either. On the blueline it's no different and between the pipes they acquired Justin Time who is already an easy first ballot hall of fame netminder and just doing victory laps at this point. As for as other teams go they should certainly try to emulate what San Francisco has done, but ultimately it's not so different from what other successful teams have done in the past. If it ain't broke don't fix it. [223 words - 4 TPE]

Regular season success is important and as far as awards and player legacy are concerned you could argue they are even more important than playoffs since they only awards available in the playoffs are MVP and the all important cup. That being said I bet the regular season MVP would trade in their Mexico trophy for a ticket to the finals. More importance will always be given to the playoffs, but the regular season is still a critical part of the year to see what you have and how likely you are to succeed. It's never a direct translation though as Atlanta showed us this season. [106 words - 2 TPE]