Anyone else find the Tampa series and the pittsburgh series very ho hum

[Based Anime Fan]

Take it from the multiple Devils fans in this thread, that was not trapping.

We definitely know a good trap when we see one.

And I happen to be an expert on good traps, because I am both a Devils fan and and anime fan.

Trust me, I know my traps.

 

[BossyMVP]

I swear to God...does anyone know what a f-ing trap is? 1. When a hockey team sends four men back on their own blue line and one man forechecks and tries to force a pass into that trap....2. Bad nightmare in Thailand

 

[SympathyForTheDevils]

Take it from the multiple Devils fans in this thread, that was not trapping.

We definitely know a good trap when we see one.

And I happen to be an expert on good traps, because I am both a Devils fan and and anime fan.

Trust me, I know my traps.

Well, CBJ and NYI did show they had a big, unexpected set of balls in these playoffs...

I change my mind: these were trapping teams.

 

[Viqsi]

Since when is giving up your blue line playing any type of defense? It is not.

Since defense is about getting the puck away from the other team so they can't score and yours can. There's many ways to do that; standing like a bastion at the blueline is merely one of them.

 

[Legionnaire]

Since defense is about getting the puck away from the other team so they can't score and yours can. There's many ways to do that; standing like a bastion at the blueline is merely one of them.

Sure. But how does old the saying go? An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure?

If they can't get in your zone then it is pretty much impossible for them to score.

 

[Patriks7]

To a low IQ hockey fan:

Good defense = trapping.

You can't blame the guy. He's a Leafs fan, doesn't know what defense is.

 

[AlexBrovechkin8]

It was pretty physical. It's wasn't as nasty as the BOS/TOR series that's going on though. And it's not like the isles scored 7 goals the entire series, they scored 14 goals in 4 games. The Pens outshot the isles in every single game. The late 90s - early 2000s Devils were notorious for only allowing ~20 shots a game.
The caps played the same defensive system for the last 4 years as well with Trotz at the helm. The difference is you guys have the offensive firepower to make for exciting games. NYI does not have that kind of offensive talent
I can understand the point that when you're on the wrong end of that D, it can be infuriating to watch, but when the isles had the Mickey Mouse D system they had last year, watching this years D is an absolute thing of beauty

I just figured there would be a lot more nastiness given they're division rivals and the Isles have that 4th line that likes to mix it up so I was surprised. The Isles this year reminded me of "Hunter Hockey" when the Caps had Dale Hunter as coach for one year. It was effective as they beat the defending Champion Bruins in 7 games but it was probably tough to watch for outsiders. And yeah, I hear you on the instant improvements Trotz makes... the difference in the Caps between Adam Oates' last year and Barry Trotz's first year was night and day. The man can coach hockey. Kinda makes you angry they wasted so many years on shitty coaches right? I've long thought the Caps would have more than one Cup in the Ovechkin era if McPhee didn't pick rookie coaches every time.

 

[TootooTrain]

One was slighty more exciting than the other, but both have been an energetic brand of playoff hockey. None were boring or dull.

 

[MAHJ71]

Yup... really boring

 

[Devilsfan118]

So is trapping good defense to a high IQ hockey fan?

Trying to figure out the equation here.

No, what I'm saying is that hockey fans who don't know what they're looking at see a team playing a solid structured defensive system and go "hur dur, muh trap, boring hockey".

 

[DudeWhereIsMakar]

I was totally sold on Tampa winning the cup this year.

 

[varano]

The islanders penguins series was a great one to watch. I loved it. The hockey was so fast and fun

 

[Isles Junkie]

what team doesn't try to impede the attacking teams progress through the neutral zone?

Why is playing a trap somehow seen as a negative? Isn't it just smart hockey?

 

[rynryn]

i quite enjoyed them.

 

[CanadianPantherFan]

Yup every game and it was more entertaining than the Pitt NYI series but still trapping isn’t my cup of tea

In game 4 first period, CBJ was cycling TB deep into the earth their heads were spinning. CBJ looked quicker to the puck on drop off and ring around passes , pinning TB deep for long durations.
That does not SCREAM trapping team to me. That screams a team being out coached without having possession of the puck.
What were the possession numbers in first period last night ?

 

[miscs75]

Pittsburgh and Tampa getting beat in 4 straight means its boring? Both of those teams forgot how to play hockey for about 10 out of 12 periods of the series (and part of OT for game 1 of the NYI/PIT series). I'm sorry that the "favorites" didn't roll through keeping the old guard strong. I'll take new teams in the 2nd round over the same teams any day of the week. Now all that needs to happen is Carolina and Toronto need to beat Washington and Boston and it'll be completely different for the first time in years. We shall see.

 

[ScaredStreit]

Anyone else feel like this is is fans can say "hey we lost to Boton and/or Toronto and I'd rather see a good series than my team win!". By the way both series were entertaining for me. People here really don't know what the trap is/was, and obviously didn't watch in the late 90's/early 2000's.

 

[Coffey]

Take it from the multiple Devils fans in this thread, that was not trapping.

We definitely know a good trap when we see one.

And I happen to be an expert on good traps, because I am both a Devils fan and and anime fan.

Trust me, I know my traps.

I figure, based on your anime avatar.

 

[SpezDispenser]

Loved the Tampa bay Columbus series. Fun, hard hitting and shocking. What more do you want?

 

[LittleSpoon]

Not unless you are a Pens or Lightning fan. Otherwise it is ****ing hilarious. You won as many playoff games as the Panthers LMAO

I am a Pens fan and thought the outcome of both was hilarious.

 

[sycamore]

As a Caps fan, the NYI/Pens series was anything but ho hum. It was pure ecstasy.

 

[saintunspecified]

Trust me, I know my traps.

Me too. And nobody can truly replicate the Devils trap because nobody else had the best puck handling goalie of all time, and even if they did the trapezoid would limit it. The tight gaps they played on D also depended on having really mobile D. I don't think I understood at the time (I do now) how dependent that style was on personnel.

NYI absolutely do often play a 1-1-3 with a lead, but they're not alone in that.

 

[saintunspecified]

Sure. But how does old the saying go? An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure?

If they can't get in your zone then it is pretty much impossible for them to score.

I mean, this is silly. Having D sit relatively stationary on your blueline is just an invitation to dump and chase. With the rules change on the trapezoid and changes wrt to enforcement of interference that style totally disappeared. Nobody plays that way anymore.

 

[SI90]

The Islanders never trapped? What are you talking about? The Isles used an aggressive forecheck 90% of each game... you dont aggresively forecheck when you trap

This is such a common mistake people make. The isles don’t play the trap. They play a 1-2-2 with the F1 going in hard on the forecheck and eventually getting support. They never want to be out numbered in the neutral zone so their F2 and F3 are always conscious of the transition and ready to pressure the puck carrier while the defense protects the blue line.

 

[Bedards Dad]

He is a leafs fan. They dont give a crap about defense

1 more goal against then your Canucks and recent cup champs, the Caps, this year.

We also had one of ththe best goal differentials. Watch those stones around your glass house.


As for the series, Tampa/CBJ was fine, the Pens/Isles series sucked. Very boring for a playoff series.