GDT: Calgary @ Vancouver 8 PM MT (SN/SN1)

[Calculon]

Pre-season just means that the record doesn't matter. Everything else, specifically things like effort, compete, teamwork and all the other cliched sports terms kind of do.

That the coach is verbalizing his displeasure and already looking to a bag skate should indicate this isn't part of some grand plan to just not try. That's something there's actually supposed to do. This team is nowhere near good enough nor has the track record to justify they'll just 'flip a switch when it matters.'

"I think there's a sense of, 'Hey, we've got our team together, and now we're going to just win.' It doesn't work that way," Gulutzan said. "So we've gotta get our work boots tied up and make things happen. We're just thinking it's going to happen. If there's a one degree off here, this is the kind of thing that happens — you get out-worked and then you scratch your head and look for answers, but there's a simple solution."

The boys can probably expect a bag-skate Friday.

"Yeah, I'm a little concerned, certainly, after this game," Gulutzan admitted. "My biggest concern is the compete-level. We just think it's going to happen. Our compete-level is not where it needs to be, and we're going to find out over the next few days what it's like not to compete."

Added Giordano, equally critical after Thursday's lacklustre showing against the Canucks: "We have to stop this now. It's been a few efforts like this that are unacceptable. I thought we got out-competed."

 

[Lunatik]

It's still pre-season, even if they were trying to win, veterans play the pre-season not to get hurt and to work on their timing more than anything. It's nothing new, it's happened before and will continue to happen. Especially when they sit with a few days off between the end of the pre-season and the start of the regular season.

 

[Johnny Hoxville]

I am concerned.

 

[lightstorm]

We couldn't have gotten off to a worse start than we did last year, and we finished strong and played extremely well in the playoffs. So I find it hard to nod along with the notion that the team can't handle a bad start.

Obviously, a good start is better than a bad start, and under no circumstance is a bad start something we or the team should want. I'm just saying let's not pretend that it's the be all and end all.

We got lucky that Quick got hurt, Kopitar/Doughty completely forgot how to hockey + one fluke run by a backup goalie no longer here.

I wouldnt count on this happening again, in fact another slow start is likely to sink their season...

 

[Anglesmith]

We got lucky that Quick got hurt, Kopitar/Doughty completely forgot how to hockey + one fluke run by a backup goalie no longer here.

I wouldnt count on this happening again, in fact another slow start is likely to sink their season...

And we also had the team struggling to learn the system, Gaudreau's down year, a non-existent third line and lopsided penalty differential, all of which is unlikely to happen again.

There will probably be factors going both ways this year, too.