Observations XVII

[TitansVolsPreds615]

I agree we should have been down way more than 1 goal after the first. Just a truly abysmal period. Hard to believe you come out that flat at home.

 

[drwpreds]

at no point in this game did i feel we deserved to win this game. we almost stole it a couple of times in OT, but that's what it would have been, a complete steal.

we started this game like a bunch of rookies in their first game seven. playing scared and not to lose or make a mistake. not like a veteran team in a hugely important game 4. Add in a couple more long range unscreened goals from rinne (aren't most of those he has allowed all playoffs?) and an absolutely pitiful PP and you have the perfect recipe for defeat. Amazed it wasn't 4-0 after the first honestly.

win or lose, i've decided this is my last full time season as a fan. too frustrating and i'm too old to worry this much over a game. do wish i would at least see a banner raised opening night next year where i could semi retire in peace.

This is none of my business of course- and I certainly understand where you are coming from- I was so crushed on my long drive home last night I absolutely have moments where I want to just not be a sports fan anymore- I would kill to NOT CARE SO MUCH.

But I can only hope this is just heat of the moment emotion for you. I mean, the greatest run in Preds history- probably one of the most exciting postseason runs a team could ever have with 7 unbelievably exciting home games, the only loss being in OT- should not be the time to walk away.......

 

[LCPreds]

I understand where 303 is coming from. I'm not typically an anxious fan but I was definitely anxious all day leading up to the game yesterday and still have a lot of that anxiety in me right now.

It's annoying and I don't like it. The price we pay to have a team that contends I suppose. It's certainly a lot easier to root for an average team with no expectations!

 

[TitansVolsPreds615]

I understand where 303 is coming from. I'm not typically an anxious fan but I was definitely anxious all day leading up to the game yesterday and still have a lot of that anxiety in me right now.

It's annoying and I don't like it. The price we pay to have a team that contends I suppose. It's certainly a lot easier to root for an average team with no expectations!

As someone who is also a Titans fan I can confirm that it is a stress free experience and you can watch the playoffs and Super Bowl in a completely relaxed state knowing you have no chance to win any of it.

 

[drwpreds]

Just a few thoughts as I try to get over that crushing defeat:

1) First thought is when you have to make a 7 hour round trip to every game, the long drive home absolutely SUCKS after a loss. And obviously this is the first time in the playoffs I have had to experience that. After a win I couldn’t care less how long the drive is.

2) I know it is easy to be very discouraged after a loss like that. And I will admit, the pessimist in me is saying “yep- we just blew our chance to pretty much end the series. We have lost home ice and now are in big trouble- we are probably going to loseâ€. However- I like to study history and past playoffs, and if you go back and look it happens quite often that teams lose a game 4 like we did- even at home- and still win the series. All you have to do is look at last year’s conference finals- San Jose was red hot and on a run similar to ours this year- they led St Louis 2 games to 1, then lost game 4 at home just as we did, giving home ice back to STL. (And got completely blown out, 6-3). But they then went on to win Game 5 in STL, and won the series in 6. Also, Pittsburgh was up 2 games to 1 vs. TB last year. Lost game 4, then lost game 5 at home to go down 3 games to 2. But then won game 6 in TB, and won game 7 at home to win series. Bottom line- we are still very much in this series no matter how bad we feel today.

3) I thought going into this series that it would be almost impossible to win all 3 of our home games. It is almost impossible to do what we have done- win 10 straight playoff home games- and to think that we were going to go undefeated at home for almost an entire postseason? Was never going to happen. If we can win game 6 at home like I think we will- it comes down to this- we have 2 chances to win 1 game in Anaheim. Can we do it?

4) Anaheim had stretches in both of their first two series- even in a series vs Calgary that they swept- that they looked absolutely awful. Calgary had a 4-1 lead in a game against them, and Edmonton ran them out of the building 7-0. We still haven’t seen that from Anaheim in this series. I thought last night the ingredients were there for that to happen- obviously did not happen.

5) How do you explain sports? Sometimes you can’t. We completely dominate them in game 3, hand them a demoralizing loss, and they look like a tired team. Everything is there for us to come out and take it to them in game 4. And then we come out and they dominate us just like we did to them in game 3. Completely inexplicable.

6) Really starting to worry about our depth. If Fisher is out, that means we are missing Fisher, Smith, Fiala, and I will even throw Wilson in there because he does not look anything close to 100% out there to me. That is almost half of our normal top 9. The Fiala injury really hurts right now- he could really be a difference maker the way he was playing.

7) Really need Aberg to start burying some of his chances. He probably should have had 2 goals last night- glorious chances that he missed on

8) Random, weird observation- was it warm in the building last night for anyone else? Been going to hockey games for 25 years and am always cold at a game. I usually get so cold at Bridgestone I have to put on a beanie. Last night I never got cold and it was actually warm to me- I could have worn shorts and sandals and would have been just fine. Just found it very odd………..

 

[TitansVolsPreds615]

8) Random, weird observation- was it warm in the building last night for anyone else? Been going to hockey games for 25 years and am always cold at a game. I usually get so cold at Bridgestone I have to put on a beanie. Last night I never got cold and it was actually warm to me- I could have worn shorts and sandals and would have been just fine. Just found it very odd………..

Absolutely was hot and it was the same Tuesday. I wore shorts Tuesday and was still sweating.

 

[Smashville Stroke]

As a Buccaneer fan, the early 2000s were rough. The failed playoff trips sucked (especially in 2000, when we were a play away from playing the Titans in the Super Bowl), but our Super Bowl was such a blowout that it made it easier to enjoy. I am also a huge Alabama fan, and I have to say that this playoff run has felt like the last ~8 or so years of watching Bama games. Knowing that one, regular season loss could end their championship hopes, creates a lot of anxiety. I have watched the end of many games through my shirt because this somehow makes me feel better. All that said, I wouldn't give any of it up for anything. I have successfully converted my wife and oldest daughter into fans of the Bucs, Preds, and Tide, and I've already started with my 3-week old (Pred rally towels make great burp cloths).

 

[drwpreds]

Interesting that moneypuck.com still has us favored to win the West and the Cup even after last night:

http://moneypuck.com/predictions.htm

 

[la flama blanca]

I agree it was hot in there, probably # of people inside plus the fact we haven't ever played a game this late in the season before . It was close to 80 outside when the game was over. Not scientific at all but that is what I am going with.

 

[nomorekids]

at no point in this game did i feel we deserved to win this game. we almost stole it a couple of times in OT, but that's what it would have been, a complete steal.

we started this game like a bunch of rookies in their first game seven. playing scared and not to lose or make a mistake. not like a veteran team in a hugely important game 4. Add in a couple more long range unscreened goals from rinne (aren't most of those he has allowed all playoffs?) and an absolutely pitiful PP and you have the perfect recipe for defeat. Amazed it wasn't 4-0 after the first honestly.

win or lose, i've decided this is my last full time season as a fan. too frustrating and i'm too old to worry this much over a game. do wish i would at least see a banner raised opening night next year where i could semi retire in peace.

I said this last night. The improbable rally hid a very, very poor game and effort. Pretty stunning, all things considered.

We were against the wall from the first period after *yet another* horrendous goal from Rinne.

Anaheim effectively has turned the tables -- they're keeping us to the outside and making it extremely difficult to get through the neutral zone with possession. A lot of that is getting the first goal the last two games.

Our entire forward corps outside of the first line and at times Neal has been essentially neutralized. We look small and impotent. Playoff Colin Wilson looks like regular season Colin Wilson. PA Parenteau made a good display of why he's been scratched and why he should go back there.

The third defensive pairing was a little better than they have been.

We've had two five on threes in this series, and both were textbook, catastrophic displays of what not to do. If we hadn't come back to tie the game with the goalie pulled, I don't know that I would have been able to sleep. We tie the game, immediately get a 1:31 5 on 3 and essentially kill it ourselves by standing still passing until eventually forcing a bad shot and losing possession.

Until the goaltender was pulled, we had 1 shot in the last 5 minutes after Subban scored.

We were lucky to get as far into overtime as we did -- still couldn't believe that Rakell shot didn't go in. After an initial flurry, Anaheim did well to control the puck in OT. I hated to lose on what seemed like such a nothing shot, and I know there was bad luck involved, but it's the story of the series and the goals we've given up.

I know DRW is going to give his "we're still in great shape\we're still a team of destiny\i'm still very optimistic," and I wish I felt that way, but if this loss felt at all the way it did to me to the actual members of the team, I don't think you can pretend that momentum is now shifted. The series is tied, but aside from game 1, there hasn't been much to be encouraged by in the last couple of games, including game 3 that we won.

Needless to say, game 5 is now the biggest game in franchise history. If we win it, I think we can wrap it up in 6 -- but if we lose, I think the series is likewise over in 6. Call that extreme or ridiculous or whatever, but for the first time this postseason, we aren't in the drivers seat. Everything that's gone right for us thus far is now going wrong.

 

[Drake744]

If Tampa Bay can play in a Conference/Cup final and have the ice not melt then we have no excuse to have a hot building.

 

[TitansVolsPreds615]

Does Lavi even consider playing Kamenev or Trenin in Fisher's place instead of moving Sissons and putting Fiddler in the lineup? I know the answer is no, just throwing it out there.

 

[nomorekids]

Does Lavi even consider playing Kamenev or Trenin in Fisher's place instead of moving Sissons and putting Fiddler in the lineup? I know the answer is no, just throwing it out there.

No, not in a million years. I would try it, in a series where we can't score goals, replacing a guy who hasn't scored with more guys who won't score doesn't seem optimal.

 

[TitansVolsPreds615]

No, not in a million years. I would try it, in a series where we can't score goals, replacing a guy who hasn't scored with more guys who won't score doesn't seem optimal.

That's my thinking. Fiddler is 40 years old and barring another miracle poke check goal we know isn't going to give us anything on offense. What do we really have to lose by trying a bigger younger, fresher player that has at least shown some offensive ability in lower levels of hockey?

 

[nomorekids]

That's my thinking. Fiddler is 40 years old and barring another miracle poke check goal we know isn't going to give us anything on offense. What do we really have to lose by trying a bigger younger, fresher player that has at least shown some offensive ability in lower levels of hockey?

I guess my only concern is that Aberg is Milwaukee's best player and even he, while getting looks here and there, has been mostly uneffective.

 

[TitansVolsPreds615]

I guess my only concern is that Aberg is Milwaukee's best player and even he, while getting looks here and there, has been mostly uneffective.

Oh there's a learning curve for sure. Just thinking I'd rather have a probably dud in the lineup versus a guaranteed dud.

 

[MusicCityPreds]

Anyone heard any rumblings of a possible Johansen injury?

 

[drwpreds]

I know DRW is going to give his "we're still in great shape\we're still a team of destiny\i'm still very optimistic," and I wish I felt that way, but if this loss felt at all the way it did to me to the actual members of the team, I don't think you can pretend that momentum is now shifted. The series is tied, but aside from game 1, there hasn't been much to be encouraged by in the last couple of games, including game 3 that we won..

Not sure why you felt the need to throw me in there.

But since you did, let me say again that I continue to find it fascinating that people on here paint me with a “homer†or “blindly optimistic†fan label. If any of you knew me in real life you would see that I am a pessimistic sports fan by nature. But on this board compared to some of you, a person can’t help but be labeled an optimist. I just can’t stand extreme, unwarranted, irrational negativity and there is a TON of that on this board. THAT is what I rail against, nothing else. And anyone calling me a blind optimist is just flat out inaccurate- go back and read all of my posts- when it is warranted I have no problem being negative- I try to tell the good and bad.

But back to your post- if you are calling me an optimist, then I think you are incredibly over the top negative in your post above. If I did not know what is going on in the series and just read your post, I would guess were down 3-1 or maybe even 3-0. To say absolutely that if we lose Saturday the series is over is completely ridiculous. Have you forgotten last year? We came back from 3-2 down against this same team with a team that isn’t even close to as good as our team this year. Would it be difficult to come back from 3-2? Of course. Impossible?? Of course not.

We played a terrible first period, but for the final 3 periods, including overtime, we were probably the better team- at worst the game was even. Anyone saying we were terrible for the whole game is just wrong.

And did you actually say there was nothing to be encouraged about in our game 3 win?? A game that we completely dominated? Outshot them 19-1 over a 20 minute stretch. 36-12 over last 49 minutes. Held them to 0 shots in final 11 minutes. Our DEFENSEMEN had more shots than their ENTIRE TEAM. There was nothing encouraging or positive from that game?? All righty then.

And even for the series as a whole, if you examine it overall, at worst the series is basically even, but I think you can easily argue that we, overall, have been the better team.

And finally, I have not said anywhere, and don’t think that “we are in great shape†are a “team of destiny†or even that I am “optimisticâ€.

But do I think we have a chance to still win this series? Absolutely- it is basically a 50/50 series now- is that too optimistic for you??? I think not.

 

[Pred303]

no, it's my last full full-time season. i'll still go occasionally. and i'll watch most of the games, and yes i plan on posting some. but no more season tickets o r even partials for me. lol, it certainly wasn't this game that decided it, it's just i have lots else to worry over and need to fret over this whole thing less. it's just time for the younger guys to take over the fandom.

 

[token grinder]

Anyone heard any rumblings of a possible Johansen injury?

Yes. Waiting to hear how bad.

Smith is in fact a high ankle sprain.

 

[MusicCityPreds]

Yes. Waiting to hear how bad.

Smith is in fact a high ankle sprain.

I've heard a broken leg. I just don't see how that could be. I don't remember him going off last night.

 

[NSH615]

Fyi...

 

[TitansVolsPreds615]

I've heard a broken leg. I just don't see how that could be. I don't remember him going off last night.

By who? Some dumb facebook commenter?

 

[drwpreds]

I've heard a broken leg. I just don't see how that could be. I don't remember him going off last night.

What????

 

[nomorekids]

Not sure why you felt the need to throw me in there.

But since you did, let me say again that I continue to find it fascinating that people on here paint me with a “homer†or “blindly optimistic†fan label. If any of you knew me in real life you would see that I am a pessimistic sports fan by nature. But on this board compared to some of you, a person can’t help but be labeled an optimist. I just can’t stand extreme, unwarranted, irrational negativity and there is a TON of that on this board. THAT is what I rail against, nothing else. And anyone calling me a blind optimist is just flat out inaccurate- go back and read all of my posts- when it is warranted I have no problem being negative- I try to tell the good and bad.

But back to your post- if you are calling me an optimist, then I think you are incredibly over the top negative in your post above. If I did not know what is going on in the series and just read your post, I would guess were down 3-1 or maybe even 3-0. To say absolutely that if we lose Saturday the series is over is completely ridiculous. Have you forgotten last year? We came back from 3-2 down against this same team with a team that isn’t even close to as good as our team this year. Would it be difficult to come back from 3-2? Of course. Impossible?? Of course not.

We played a terrible first period, but for the final 3 periods, including overtime, we were probably the better team- at worst the game was even. Anyone saying we were terrible for the whole game is just wrong.

And did you actually say there was nothing to be encouraged about in our game 3 win?? A game that we completely dominated? Outshot them 19-1 over a 20 minute stretch. 36-12 over last 49 minutes. Held them to 0 shots in final 11 minutes. Our DEFENSEMEN had more shots than their ENTIRE TEAM. There was nothing encouraging or positive from that game?? All righty then.

And even for the series as a whole, if you examine it overall, at worst the series is basically even, but I think you can easily argue that we, overall, have been the better team.

And finally, I have not said anywhere, and don’t think that “we are in great shape†are a “team of destiny†or even that I am “optimisticâ€.

But do I think we have a chance to still win this series? Absolutely- it is basically a 50/50 series now- is that too optimistic for you??? I think not.

I'm not meaning to pick on you, you're just typically the "optimistic voice of reason\it's not all that bad" guy around here

The series is 2-2...you're right about that. It's a best 2 out of three at this point. However, I think maybe where we disagree is where the advantage lies. I think that at this point, Anaheim has a lot of momentum, they have home-ice advantage again, they appear to have figured out what strategic adjustments need to be made. I think that if there's any hope of salvation, it's winning the next game. If we lose and are faced with winning two in a row -- I think our chances are very low.