GDT: Pens at Carolina

What the Faulk

You'll know when you go
May 30, 2005
42,121
3,851
North Carolina
I skimmed the Eric stuff, and I think any attempts at wanting him to stay are revisionist history. I miss his production as much as anyone, but his play declined here (through his fault or other circumstances such as Peters/injury), and I fully agree that he wasn't making players better. I think he could be much more successful between Aho and Teravainen than than Jordan, but the trade absolutely had to happen when it did, and I don't think he would have signed here for similar money to what he did in Minnesota. It's unfortunate, because had they gone against popular opinion and re-signed him, I think they're comfortably in the playoffs right now.

Aho // Eric // Teravainen
Rask // Jordan // Williams
Skinner // Lindholm // Stempniak
McGinn // Ryan // Nordstrom

That's a real team.
 

My Special Purpose

Registered User
Apr 8, 2008
8,151
21,787
Staal wasn’t talented enough to carry a team by himself, and he got too old to engage beast mode. Or he stopped wanting to. Or whatever reason you want to assign to it. Regardless he wasn’t doing it anymore for us, as well as us never having enough quality around him. Putting any of it on Peters is comical. Staal’s play flat out declined.

I don’t want him back. We need to fully move away from the Staal era altogether I think. I don’t care if he did score more now that he found whatever was holding him back. I’ll never believe that was Peters.

It wasn't. It was Francis. IMO, Peters is aware there's an accountability issue here, and that players get complacent when they realize that losing is accepted here, and he's tried to put his foot down. But at the end of the day, his only options are the guys currently on the roster. As of right now, more of them have quit than are still trying, so what can he do?

Francis may even know this and he's trying to keep guys like Foegele, Wallmark, Saarela and Zykov from falling victim and he's keeping them away. Unfortunately, he's losing Faulk, Skinner, Rask and others in the meantime. I dunno. I barely care anymore.

All I know is that this team is dying and nobody seems to want to do anything about it. We may not be the Senators, but we're not far off.
 

Negan4Coach

Fantastic and Stochastic
Aug 31, 2017
5,784
14,670
Raleigh, NC
WAIT. Jordan Staal didn't play last night? Well that explains a lot. I was there but I was only like half watching the game. Had no idea he was out.

Sorry guys this was my fault. I've now seen them get outscored 16-3 in games I've gone to with an opposing fan. Luckily there's only one more Rangers/Red Wings/Penguins home game this year.

Then can you just stawp going with opposing fans already?

And BTW, f*** opposing fans where they breathe. If you are going to move down here and remain, then at least have the decency to root for the team that represents your new home.
 

Discipline Daddy

Brentcent Van Burns
Nov 27, 2009
2,605
6,780
Raleigh, NC
I thought we played pretty well in the first. Canes had a great thing going in the neutral zone where players actively stepped out in front of passes, knocking pucks down, and making it hard to enter our zone. I liked our game plan to start. We set up good scoring chances, but threw everything far from the net.

Pittsburgh then goes up 3-1 and the floor falls out from underneath. Canes start playing back, letting the Pens in their zone. Ward is left with players streaking in, cross-crease passes, and men right in front of the crease with no one knocking them down. No wonder he was pissed after the last two goals. I don't blame him, and I like to see that fire, honestly.

It's been true for a while that the Carolina Hurricanes are the most mentally fragile team in the goddamned NHL. We score a goal early and look like the 2002 Detroit Red Wings with confident passes and puck possession. The other team scores first, or gets a 2 goal lead, and we look like the 2004 Washington Capitals. There are a small handful of players on the team who don't play WILDLY different depending on the in-game situation. Williams, Aho, Slavin, Pesce, Ward, maybe McGinn and Nordstrom. Jeff Skinner is the epitome of this. He is either a threat every time he's on the ice, or he's doing all the wrong things without the puck, and turning it over when he has it. If I'm Thomas Dundon, I find whoever Toronto uses as a sports psychologist, I pay them whatever they want, and I bring them here. More than anything, this team needs to believe it is a playoff team. I know in their hearts they do not believe it.
 

AD Skinner

Registered User
Mar 18, 2009
12,847
38,721
bubble bath
Great post DD. I've really come to believe that it's mental more than a lack of talent although there is a serious talent problem. One legit scoring threat would do wonders but more importantly is someone creating the community belief that this is a group of winners. Seems like Williams is trying but coming up short.
 

What the Faulk

You'll know when you go
May 30, 2005
42,121
3,851
North Carolina
Then can you just stawp going with opposing fans already?

And BTW, **** opposing fans where they breathe. If you are going to move down here and remain, then at least have the decency to root for the team that represents your new home.

Well this time there was a girl involved so nah. But if my Rangers fan friend wants me to go with him to the last game, he's buying me all the beer
 

Boom Boom Apathy

I am the Professor. Deal with it!
Sep 6, 2006
48,174
97,102
If you are going to move down here and remain, then at least have the decency to root for the team that represents your new home.

It's not that simple. If you are a diehard fan of a team, you will never root for a different team when you move. When I grew up, I was a big Green Bay Packers fans (when they sucked), a die-hard Cubs fan (when they really sucked), a moderate Redwings fan and a casual Pistons fan. I could move to any city and would never change allegiances for the Packers and Cubs. But for the NHL and NBA, not a big deal. I don't really follow the NBA but converted to a Canes fan pretty easily.
 

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