Post-Game Talk: WCQF GM02 | Vancouver Canucks lose to Nashville Predators | 4-1 (Zadorov) | Stars Can't Score

[Angry Little Elf]

And to think we could have had even more if we shot on even half the times I furiously yelled SHOOT at the TV.

Hi dad

 

[Angry Little Elf]

If it keeps going like tonight you have to wonder how banged up the Predators are by game 5.

Ryan McDonut is clearly not 100%

 

[PavelBure10]

I was yelling at the TV at "Pettersson in particular" a few times last night. Missing a wide open net on the powerplay, and deciding to pass rather than shoot when Saros was down and out. I don't know what is up with the Alien, but he has been terrible since the all star break. Last seasons Pettersson would of never miss these opportunities. What happened to picking the corners 20ft out? His confidence is shot. I really hope he comes out of his funk.

 

[dalewood12]

As a Pens fan, DeSmith's performance was exactly as expected.

 

[Just A Bit Outside]

The over reaction is insane. He coached this team to 50 wins. Let’s chill out.
We lost a game where our coach failed to get the players to adjust to all the damn shot blocks. If that persists that go for it.

PP is a giant f***ing issue, get the Sedins on it and see if they can fix it.

If you think they are going to fix the PP now after it’s been shit since Jan, you’re delusional.

 

[Billy Kvcmu]

Lmfao and who gave it to him coach?????

Wasn’t Tocchet sick last week

Bruh

 

[PuckMunchkin]

As a Pens fan, DeSmith's performance was exactly as expected.

He was good enough for the Canucks to win.

 

[ManVanFan]

Silovs was pretty bad in the regular season. If we have to resort to him we’re boned.

At this point, DeSmith has proven that he can't give the team a chance to win.

He was good enough for the Canucks to win.

His -1.61 goals saved above average says otherwise. Not good, not playoff goaltending performance worthy. Just average and he was below that.

 

[BenningHurtsMySoul]

That 3rd goal was the killer. Horrible rebound control.

But ultimately, that doesn't go in the net if Pettersson makes the safe play instead of randomly hooking it across the blue line. Absolutely zero defensive awareness there.

If it was 2-1, I think the Canucks come back and win.

 

[TruGr1t]

If you think they are going to fix the PP now after it’s been shit since Jan, you’re delusional.

I would broaden this statement ... if you think the team is going to fix the overall offensive problems it's had since the all-star break you're living on a hope and a prayer, at this point. Offensively, I think they ranked 25-27th in five-on-five shot rate post All-Star Game and ranked in the bottom 10 among all NHL teams on the season.

PP is just one major symptom of a larger problem.

 

[Just A Bit Outside]

I would broaden this statement ... if you think the team is going to fix the overall offensive problems it's had since the all-star break you're living on a hope and a prayer, at this point. Offensively, I think they ranked 25-27th in five-on-five shot rate post All-Star Game and ranked in the bottom 10 among all NHL teams on the season.

PP is just one major symptom of a larger problem.

Too many people still think this can be the team from the beginning of the season.

They are not.

That team had swagger. It also had everything go right for them.

Demko coming back was the only saving grace and possible X factor. That lasted 1 game.

Nashville also played exactly how they wanted to for their road games. Will be different on their ice.

It is what it is but to have pure blind faith that everything is going to be ok based on substantial evidence on the contrary, is crazy to me.

 

[TruGr1t]

Too many people still think this can be the team from the beginning of the season.

They are not.

That team had swagger. It also had everything go right for them.

Demko coming back was the only saving grace and possible X factor. That lasted 1 game.

Nashville also played exactly how they wanted to for their road games. Will be different on their ice.

It is what it is but to have pure blind faith that everything is going to be ok based on substantial evidence on the contrary, is crazy to me.

It's driving the stat-watchers nuts because they keep scratching their head saying "well the Canucks dominated possession for large parts of the game and generated 37 shots in the third period" (only 6 hit the net, by the way). This has been the refrain since the all-star break, and it's now a large enough sample to theorize there is a larger problem with how they generate goals and execute offensively, versus some sort of "puck luck" that is going to revert to the mean at some point.

I have read Tocchet's system focuses more on maintaining offensive zone time than generating high-danger chances, so I assume it's a combination of coaching and the players inability to execute on the relatively few high-danger chances they generate per game.

The combination has made them basically a bottom-tier NHL team offensively since the all-star break.

 

[Grumbler]

The next few games will really test our top line guys without Demko (we will see if they are playoff busts). I'll reserve my final judgement until game 5 is over.

But so far they played like shit especially Pettersson. Definitely the teams weakest link.

 

[Nucker101]

As a Latvian clearly I'd love to see Šilovs play, but not sure if SC playoffs is the right timing for such knee-jerk reaction after one crap game from DeSmith. Or is there extra context?

Only 15 sog against per game might feel weird for a Latvian goalie so I’m not so sure either.


(I kid, I kid)

 

[SopelFanThe3rd]

Anyone else fall asleep naked and crying?

 

[Bobby9]

How ass has EP been?

 

[ellja3]

Thanks for jumping in. It seems to me that (if Demko is out long-term), Canucks fans know that DeSmith is highly unlikely to be able to handle a starting role, whereas Silovs is unknown.

A bit of a reversal of the saying "the devil you know is better than the one you don't".

If the odds of being eliminated are high either way, I think the prevailing opinion is that you may as well roll the dice on the unknown rather than the almost-guaranteed elimination (with DeSmith).

Yeah, that's fair and I can see this perspective of unknown, but I'd roll this dice only if DeSmith is crap in game3 also - because I am not a fan of pulling a goalie after one shit game and even if he fails again, 1:2 in series isn't that dramatic.

 

[ellja3]

Only 15 sog against per game might feel weird for a Latvian goalie so I’m not so sure either.


(I kid, I kid)

Yeah that would be highly unusual

 

[ChuckFanForever]

The Vancouver Canucks were 23-14-4 on the road this season.

Good teams have to win a few games on the road. Let's see how the guys bounce back in Game 3...

 

[Hollywood Burrows]

you gotta admit that first goal was pretty funny!

 

[Hodgy]

It's driving the stat-watchers nuts because they keep scratching their head saying "well the Canucks dominated possession for large parts of the game and generated 37 shots in the third period" (only 6 hit the net, by the way). This has been the refrain since the all-star break, and it's now a large enough sample to theorize there is a larger problem with how they generate goals and execute offensively, versus some sort of "puck luck" that is going to revert to the mean at some point.

I have read Tocchet's system focuses more on maintaining offensive zone time than generating high-danger chances, so I assume it's a combination of coaching and the players inability to execute on the relatively few high-danger chances they generate per game.

The combination has made them basically a bottom-tier NHL team offensively since the all-star break.

This is generally my thoughts as well. Tochett how he is training there team to okay well in one goal games in the regular season so that this trait shines through in the playoffs. And that makes sense and there is utility there. And I think you saw that to a degree in the first game.

But the team seems to have also lost its ability to score in bunches and come back from multiple goal deficits like we saw earlier in the year. So I think there is a trade off. We may be better in one goal games as our defensive is tighter, but it’s at the expense of scoring chance generation, so when we get down more than one goal we struggle to come back.

How many times have we scored more than 3 goals (excluding empty netters) since the TDL?

With all that said, of course the Canucks didn’t get the puck luck tonight, and were obviously the better team. But I do think some are overrating the “shot attempt” stat. It’s one thing to have a great shot attempt that misses the net, but it’s another thing if a team is clogging up the middle of the ice, and you aren’t moving the puck laterally enough to open up shooting lanes, but are just continually whipping the puck at the net and they are getting blocked. Obviously not saying we were entirely the latter, but you get the point.

 

[BenningHurtsMySoul]

The Vancouver Canucks were 23-14-4 on the road this season.

Good teams have to win a few games on the road. Let's see how the guys bounce back in Game 3...

What was their record post All Star Break? I don't take anything from the 1st half of the season into account right now, they aren't the same team.

 

[TruGr1t]

This is generally my thoughts as well. Tochett how he is training there team to okay well in one goal games in the regular season so that this trait shines through in the playoffs. And that makes sense and there is utility there. And I think you saw that to a degree in the first game.

But the team seems to have also lost its ability to score in bunches and come back from multiple goal deficits like we saw earlier in the year. So I think there is a trade off. We may be better in one goal games as our defensive is tighter, but it’s at the expense of scoring chance generation, so when we get down more than one goal we struggle to come back.

How many times have we scored more than 3 goals (excluding empty netters) since the TDL?

With all that said, of course the Canucks didn’t get the puck luck tonight, and were obviously the better team. But I do think some are overrating the “shot attempt” stat. It’s one thing to have a great shot attempt that misses the net, but it’s another thing if a team is clogging up the middle of the ice, and you aren’t moving the puck laterally enough to open up shooting lanes, but are just continually whipping the puck at the net and they are getting blocked. Obviously not saying we were entirely the latter, but you get the point.

Where "puck luck" mostly comes into it, in my opinion, is the first 30 games or so. I don't think they've changed their style of play much over the season, but early in the year they had obscene conversion rates and every second shot seemed to be going into the net, which made this system look formidable. When you're not scoring at a high conversion rate on a lower volume of chances, the system gets you into the bottom of the league offensively.

That's not all bounces, though, because the execution offensively has also been bad since the all-star break. So some of it is on the players for "gripping sticks too hard" or whatever, but some of it is the system they play just doesn't generate a ton of high-quality scoring opportunities anyway.

 

[vancityluongo]

not too worried about winning the series, but this was a game they should have won. removes the margin for error, especially if nashville comes out on home ice and plays like they deserve to win.

a very simple question reminiscent of a particularly simple moron - but when was the last time petey ripped the puck for a goal? he had one in the ot win vs columbus in january that i remember... but he's mostly been scoring tap-ins since. he needs to shoot until he gets that and things will open up. want to see 6+ shots from him in game 3.

 

[ManVanFan]

you gotta admit that first goal was pretty funny!

Considering the fans were chanting in support of him when it happened makes it better.