Speculation: 2018 Off-Season: We fell short again... now what do we do?

[Bolt 45]

Agreed. I believe we have the personnel. I think coaching is the issue for our disappointments lately. It may rest entirely on the players behind the scenes and Cooper may be trying his best, but at some point, at face value, it's apparent we play his brand of hockey and we've lost two conference finals when we were up 3-2 and lost 3 straight in a SCF when we didn't lose 3 straight the entire year.

Then there's the flaw of having too many small guys. This is a psychological issue to an extent. Numerous times Johnson, Gourde and Cirelli held up when carrying the puck and a hit was never made on them. I can't blame them. I'm taller than all of them and played a very physical style when I played hockey, but if I saw Wilson or Ovechkin flying at me, I would probably panic as well and brace myself for my last breath of life. They are going to make a play but they are not willing to get decapitated. Bigger players can deal with this a bit better. Small players that get hit for 4 or 5 consecutive games have the tendency to fade away into obscurity. Exceptions are guys like Marty, nothing could keep him down in any game against anybody. It's not to say bigger framed players don't either or like the idea of getting pounded but it's not just height difference like Boston. Caps had some weight on us too. Couple the height and weight differences without losing any speed and that was not in our favor. Not to mention we had terrible hockey fundamentals, a one dimensional game plan, minimal adjustments that were ineffective and entirely run off the rink in 18 of 21 periods.

There's so many problems when you sit down and think, this was a problem, that was a problem, he was a problem, that matchup was a problem, etc but in the end, if you compare this roster to winning rosters of the last five years, there's no reason we shouldn't be in the SCF. Even at a minimum of losing in this round, it should not have been 99% on Vasilevskiy to keep us in games. The fact that he gave us a chance in game 3, stole game 4 and I'd argue played great in 5 to stave off a late push, it could've been done in 5 games for us. That's not good - at all, and totally unacceptable with this roster.

Lol. We didn't do anything right, except put our goalkeeper through his paces with 7 live-fire exercises. I agree about our smaller guys not liking to get hit, but, at the same time, there isn't a single player on our roster who's as soft as either Kuznetsov or Backstrom. I mean, Backstrom's known for being soft, but Kuznetsov would dump the puck or dish it off the minute he noticed anyone starting to size him up. It was pretty obvious. Why we weren't hammering the crap out of him along the boards whenever the opportunity presented itself is beyond me. We had countless opportunities to do it, too, but we'd just try for the poke check and get burned. Every time. We gave him way too much respect. That annoyed me more than anything else we were doing. I don't want to say we're a soft team, but we were too soft in that series for sure.

 

[Stammertime91]

Lol. We didn't do anything right, except put our goalkeeper through his paces with 7 live-fire exercises. I agree about our smaller guys not liking to get hit, but, at the same time, there isn't a single player on our roster who's as soft as either Kuznetsov or Backstrom. I mean, Backstrom's known for being soft, but Kuznetsov would dump the puck or dish it off the minute he noticed anyone starting to size him up. It was pretty obvious. Why we weren't hammering the crap out of him along the boards whenever the opportunity presented itself is beyond me. We had countless opportunities to do it, too, but we'd just try for the poke check and get burned. Every time. We gave him way too much respect. That annoyed me more than anything else we were doing. I don't want to say we're a soft team, but we were too soft in that series for sure.

Yup. If you watch their breakout...they would make one or two passes and skate 5 seconds uncontested until they hit our zone. We backed up and backed up so much, the puck carrier that brought it in was within very good range to take a shot before he was pressured. We gave them way too much respect and played cowardice in the neutral zone. Said it like 3 times in the first two games and so did other posters, why on earth did we back down so much and waive sticks in our zone. Then on the flip side, we get snuffed at their blue line. It was night and day. Disappointing. I put the blame on Bowness cause that was a 7 game trend and no adjustment to hold the blue line was made. Mind boggling.

 

[HoseEmDown]

Brayden Point will be better than Tavares in a couple of years and be making a hell of a lot less. Waste of cap space bringing someone like him in.

As for the wings we don't have a Wilson nor do I see us getting a Wilson type, just not our style. We have some guys over 6' coming up in Katchouk, Volkov and Raddysh. Stephens is under but plays like a much bigger player. If we keep Miller that's another guy who can throw his weight around. Don't think we need to go out to get size.

 

[TampaJay]

Agreed. I believe we have the personnel. I think coaching is the issue for our disappointments lately. It may rest entirely on the players behind the scenes and Cooper may be trying his best, but at some point, at face value, it's apparent we play his brand of hockey and we've lost two conference finals when we were up 3-2 and lost 3 straight in a SCF when we didn't lose 3 straight the entire year.

Then there's the flaw of having too many small guys. This is a psychological issue to an extent. Numerous times Johnson, Gourde and Cirelli held up when carrying the puck and a hit was never made on them. I can't blame them. I'm taller than all of them and played a very physical style when I played hockey, but if I saw Wilson or Ovechkin flying at me, I would probably panic as well and brace myself for my last breath of life. They are going to make a play but they are not willing to get decapitated. Bigger players can deal with this a bit better. Small players that get hit for 4 or 5 consecutive games have the tendency to fade away into obscurity. Exceptions are guys like Marty, nothing could keep him down in any game against anybody. It's not to say bigger framed players don't either or like the idea of getting pounded but it's not just height difference like Boston. Caps had some weight on us too. Couple the height and weight differences without losing any speed and that was not in our favor. Not to mention we had terrible hockey fundamentals, a one dimensional game plan, minimal adjustments that were ineffective and entirely run off the rink in 18 of 21 periods.

There's so many problems when you sit down and think, this was a problem, that was a problem, he was a problem, that matchup was a problem, etc but in the end, if you compare this roster to winning rosters of the last five years, there's no reason we shouldn't be in the SCF. Even at a minimum of losing in this round, it should not have been 99% on Vasilevskiy to keep us in games. The fact that he gave us a chance in game 3, stole game 4 and I'd argue played great in 5 to stave off a late push, it could've been done in 5 games for us. That's not good - at all, and totally unacceptable with this roster.

Agreed. Marty also had thighs like Earl Campbell, and he was more the exception than the rule – he wasn’t playing on a line with guys the size of Point and Gourde… who are two of my favorite players btw, I bought a Point jersey back when people still expected him to get sent to the AHL. All I want to see is some more balance. Listening to Yzerman in that exit interview I think he gets it. About Adam Erne he said, “We thought he brought some ingredients to our team that made us better.” The main ingredient that Erne brings is a bit of size without sacrificing speed. We can debate Erne’s potential, but I can’t imagine what else Yzerman was referring to. When Miller came in he also said something to the affect that Miller brings something we lack. We don’t need any drastic changes, just some more balance to withstand playoffs physically. We don’t need any goons or slow plugs just for their size.
But it's easier said than done.

 

[LonLon Lei]

You are, of course, correct. There's more to our guys' overall defensive play than just a certain selection of stats. I think I was overreacting to some people's overreactions in declaring certain players as poop.

Now that a day has passed, if I try to look at it more objectively, all of our defense actually played very well overall until the final series vs Washington. McD was offensively strong in the first series with 5 assists, the McD/Stråls pairing helped the Point line keep Taylor Hall and the Bergeron/Marchand/Pasternak lines under control for both of the first two series which is a terrific accomplishment. G made some great defensive plays, scored two goals and blocked a ton of shots and hit plenty. Coburn played better than we've seen in years. Sergachev made humongous progress considering he's a 19 year old rookie. Hedman had some solid moments too despite an ever rotating complement of partners.

It was just that final series when everything seemed to fall apart. But heck, we were down and drove it to a Game 7 part of which was pretty close.


Me too. Some Caps fans have been very understanding and sympathetic. Like Yzerman said in his 'exit' interview, the season ended in disappointment, not failure and that he will be spending his summer tweaking things to keep us improving so that we can return to the SCF and bring Lord Stanley home.

welp I just want to apologize to you for failing to respond to your commens more nicely, coz I remember I did that before and now as long as we see the same things, we're doomed to have the same exchanges! And you know what? It's their faaaaultt!!!　Neither me nor you, deal?
I do think it's our systematic and coaching issue though like you and some others here think that makes our D look so helpless.
And yeah, just because of the tragic end, we sort of had to forget everything good they've done...I'm almost in Zen state now where I feel nothing matters much lol!
Have a nice summer!

 

[Stammertime91]

Brayden Point will be better than Tavares in a couple of years and be making a hell of a lot less. Waste of cap space bringing someone like him in.

As for the wings we don't have a Wilson nor do I see us getting a Wilson type, just not our style. We have some guys over 6' coming up in Katchouk, Volkov and Raddysh. Stephens is under but plays like a much bigger player. If we keep Miller that's another guy who can throw his weight around. Don't think we need to go out to get size.

That's lateral though. That's a bit down the line and Miller just played smaller than Point this postseason. Outside of crushing Lovejoy, throwing a couple hits against Boston and laying a good hit on Orpik, he was not the physical presence we need. His size should've helped and it really didnt. You're wanting to just move along with what we have instead of bringing somebody in. The small forward with 1 physical vet outline isn't working. Bringing in Miller didn't help out with Point, Gourde, Cirelli, Johnson and even guys like Kuch and Stamkos. We looked like ants getting stepped on by humans. I won't forget in game 6 seeing Kunitz and Paquettes bodies flying across my tv. And those were our physical guys. It's much easier to contain and defend against small players. Especially when half a team plays the same brand with the same frame. Not to mention our biggest players don't play an overly large game either.

I'm all for bringing in a Simmonds type of player that has an edge and can play. Palat, Miller and 1-2 more guys while moving Johnson would bode extremely well come postseason for us. Palat had 6 ES goals and Johnson did not produce. Wouldn't cry a tear seeing Johnson move providing somebody with size can fill his place.

 

[TeslaCoilFan]

welp I just want to apologize to you for failing to respond to your commens more nicely, coz I remember I did that before and now as long as we see the same things, we're doomed to have the same exchanges! And you know what? It's their faaaaultt!!!　Neither me nor you, deal?
I do think it's our systematic and coaching issue though like you and some others here think that makes our D look so helpless.
And yeah, just because of the tragic end, we sort of had to forget everything good they've done...I'm almost in Zen state now where I feel nothing matters much lol!
Have a nice summer!

lol Thanks and it's a Deal!

I definitely agree about the systematic/coaching being the main issue with regards to our D.

But yeah, In Yzerman We Trust! Have a great summer too!

 

[Iceman]

Our coach needs to go. Shame Stevie won't realize the issue until we've wasted 5 years.

 

[Todd1a]

Our coach needs to go. Shame Stevie won't realize the issue until we've wasted 5 years.

no no no lol the problem is we need another Ranger how about Rick Nash ya stevie will get him lol

 

[Todd1a]

Our coach needs to go. Shame Stevie won't realize the issue until we've wasted 5 years.

but yes iceman cooper has had enough shots at the cup he needs to go

 

[Master P]

but yes iceman cooper has had enough shots at the cup he needs to go

I understand how you feel but who would we get in his place? I'm not against a new coach but I think that it needs to be a clear upgrade if we are to let Cooper go.

 

[Todd1a]

I understand how you feel but who would we get in his place? I'm not against a new coach but I think that it needs to be a clear upgrade if we are to let Cooper go.

I'd try Alain Vigneault really he is the best option out there he can't do any worse then what we have. But at this point I'm waiting for the blackhawks to fire Quenneville at midseason and grab him asap yzerman.

 

[T REX]

It's not on us to come up with a better coach. It is up to Stevie Y.

 

[Todd1a]

It's not on us to come up with a better coach. It is up to Stevie Y.

hey barry trotz has not extended with the caps yet maybe after he wins the cup he leaves them?

 

[HoseEmDown]

I'd try Alain Vigneault really he is the best option out there he can't do any worse then what we have. But at this point I'm waiting for the blackhawks to fire Quenneville at midseason and grab him asap yzerman.

I thought you were trolling but you seem to be for real. Vigneault is hot garbage and his system sucks. Dudes been fired from his last two jobs and he took two former cup finalists to lottery teams real quick. Quenneville is starting to go the wrong way himself, he's getting older and I don't know how much he has left. We need to look for someone younger with some new ideas.

 

[AlphaCatalyst]

hey barry trotz has not extended with the caps yet maybe after he wins the cup he leaves them?

Switching teams after a SC win is not something a coach would do.


That’s more of a GM thing.

 

[Todd1a]

I thought you were trolling but you seem to be for real. Vigneault is hot garbage and his system sucks. Dudes been fired from his last two jobs and he took two former cup finalists to lottery teams real quick. Quenneville is starting to go the wrong way himself, he's getting older and I don't know how much he has left. We need to look for someone younger with some new ideas.

Who would you want I'm all ears man ?

 

[Rschmitz]

Swap Kucherov for Karlsson. Half kidding...err...maybe only a third kidding

We have the supporting cast in the AHL, clear out the passengers and make room for those guys. Having our superstars disappear for the playoffs is why we aren't in the final.

 

[Sky04]

I'd try Alain Vigneault really he is the best option out there he can't do any worse then what we have. But at this point I'm waiting for the blackhawks to fire Quenneville at midseason and grab him asap yzerman.

The single dumbest suggestion in here. You know this guy plays Dan Girardi first pairing minutes right and his system is much worse than Cooper.

You're also the guy who said you didn't want Cooper fired a week ago, such bandwagon mentality.

 

[Todd1a]

 

[Stammertime91]

They're right lol. At least somebody filming themselves said what a lot of us were thinking and saying.

 

[TampaJay]

Those guys are not wrong to criticize Stamkos and Kucherov 5 on 5 play, but for it to be constructive you have to say why. I think part of Stamkos’ problem in the playoffs was actually due to Kucherov. It probably sounds crazy but here’s my point. Kucherov loves to play the big ice, Russian, pass the puck into the net game that he grew up playing. When he was on the triplets line, with Johnson and Palat being more north-south guys, it sort of helped to reign in that tendency. Stamkos, however, adapted to Kucherov’s style (and Vlady fit right in) and it worked great for the first half of the year. But you could see in the second half of the year where opponents started figuring out how to combat it and the tic-tac-toe plays turned into turnovers. Then in the playoffs when the whistles were swallowed, it was even more ineffective. Kucherov needs to get back to realizing he is on North American ice (enough with the too cute passes) and Stamkos needs to get back to realizing his forte is as a sniper not a set up man. That probably won’t happen unless they are split up. Great chemistry, wrong continent.

 

[T REX]

BRUTAL. TOO MUCH TRUTH.

Ouch.

Coopers has next year only and he's done. Cooper is officially on notice.

 

[DFC]

BRUTAL. TOO MUCH TRUTH.

Ouch.

Coopers has next year only and he's done. Cooper is officially on notice.

It's interesting to see Canadian media start to realize that Stamkos just hasn't been a clutch performer in his career. I agree with pretty much everything they said here.

And I do think that the heat goes up on Cooper next season. The moment we take a step backward, I think the heat will be WAY up. The only thing about right now is, technically, we still took a step forward over where we were last year.

We entered this season with a goal of just making the playoffs. It wasn't until early November that it we (fans) really began to believe that this roster was/is For Real.

Anyway, getting back to Stamkos, it's starting to be came a Flash vs. Substance thing. He's probably always going to put up regular season numbers that aren't really an accurate reflection of his contribution to the team. And then, in the playoffs, we wind up seeing a more accurate picture of his role with us.

 

[These Are The Days]

McDonagh and Foote for Karlsson? What else are we adding? Either that we wait til he's a UFA. I think at some point his desire to come here was genuine