The time to coach is over, there is nothing left to figure out at this point. This series is exactly what it was going to always be... and unstoppable force vs an immovable object. The Isles have been ham-stringed with injuries... nothing you can do about it now.
There is a reason we havent seen alot of back-and-forth play from these teams, and it always seems that one team is dominating the other. It is an unstoppable force vs an immovable object. There can be no in between.
When they get pucks in deep and they grind us, we tire, and slow, and lose. When we cycle circles around them, they chase, they tire, give up chances, and lose. Thats it, there is no in between, and there never has been in this series. One team is always imposing their will on the other. The Caps cant play our game, and the Isles cant play their game.
The best way to play a game when you have no defense left, is to not play defense. You put the best defense that we have, that will help us get the puck out of our zone swiftly and cleanly, so we can get back on offense as efficiently as possible. You dont put out a defense based on how well then can take/give a hit, put a defense out there that doesnt stay their long enough to get hit. Put a defense out there that will help you keep the puck in the offensive zone as long as possible.
Most people in here are concerned with how our defense will fair, the concern is on the forwards. In this game we need to be on offense all game long. As the series grows longer, stints spent in your defensive zone get harder and harder to break, weakening the strength needed to spend time running in the offensive zone. There needs to be one zone in THIS game for THIS team to succeed.
