Post-Game Talk: #72| New York Islanders @ Minnesota Wild | March 17th | 6:00 PM | F/OTW 3-2

[doublechili]

You can't do that. You know that, right?

We know that, but maybe Brock doesn't....

 

[notDatsyuk]

So with Barzal setting up the winner, we forgive his puck-losing dangles, right?

After all the complaining about the reffing tonight, some of it justified imo, I tune in to TSN to see Dallas' Khudobin very deliberately knock the net off, with no penalty called, and later on a penalty shot, clearly throw his stick, again with no penalty called.

Fortunately, as here, karma prevails.

 

[BelovedIsles]

Not a bad game. Would like to see Lehner in there.

Pretty evenly matched. Barzal looked good.

Keep it rolling.

 

[nystromshairstylist]

You can't do that. You know that, right?

Why not?

 

[Richie Daggers Crime]

Why not?

You can't have incentives on contracts at his age.

 

[Instant]

Oh wow, niiice! But please remember, it doesn't matter that we won, the world IS STILL ENDING!

Jk, it was a good game, it's nice to see the Isles on top of the Metro again, even if it's just for a moment. But the whole Lehner situation worries be though, a bit.

 

[Le Grec]

It's a good thing they got the 2 points because if they put up an effort like that against Boston, they are going to get hammered.

Having said that, I thought the D played well, but the forwards were weak to say the least.
Where the hell was Bailey?

 

[buud]

Not a bad game. Would like to see Lehner in there.

Pretty evenly matched. Barzal looked good.

Keep it rolling.

he's healthy, right? guessing that Trotz feels the same about him as he does Boychuk? he's ready, but he's gonna ride Griess until he starts to fade. it's good that both Johnny and Lehner are getting a rest.

as long as we're winning...

 

[crasherino]

It's a good thing they got the 2 points because if they put up an effort like that against Boston, they are going to get hammered.

Having said that, I thought the D played well, but the forwards were weak to say the least.
Where the hell was Bailey?

I don’t think Bailey came back From the Bahamas from the all star break.

Yesterday’s performance would get them destroyed by Boston/Tampa, etc. But Thurs/Sat’s performance would have them going blow for blow with anyone. When this team plays to its full ability, it’s a wonderful thing to see. Conversely, the flawed version of themselves is frustrating. Unfortunately, there’s not much room for error when they aren’t on their game. Yesterday was.....fortunate. But I guess yesterday was as fortunate as Saturday was unfortunate. At this point, splitting a road B2B isn’t the worst thing in the world.

 

[Chapin Landvogt]

It's a good thing they got the 2 points because if they put up an effort like that against Boston, they are going to get hammered.

Having said that, I thought the D played well, but the forwards were weak to say the least.

Where the hell was Bailey?

Where the hell has Bailey been?

Absolutely no excuse whatsoever to be disappearing in this manner, not when you're getting upwards of 5 MM per season.

He hasn't gathered a point in at least 5 (I think it's now 6) games. But it's not just that... I haven't seen him involved in a dangerous offensive play in weeks. And now we're in a phase where HE has to be one of the leaders. Instead, he's wilted away.

In general, the offense last night, like on other nights, was very disappointing, because it is working so hard and creating next to no dangerous chances.

Some might ask how the hell to play against a guy like Stalock and not bombard this guy with shots of all sorts and angles right from the get-go?

Ok, so Trotz seems like the low shotcount approach the best. I guess he feels it takes the goalie out of the game.

But does Beauvillier EVER hit the net?

How many of our guys had their shots thwarted by poke checks?

How many pucks have been bouncing over our players' stick blades when they've tried to shoot.

More importantly, how often does this team put a one-timer on the net? We hardly ever see these boys putting each other in a position to take a good, hard one-timer.

So little danger, so few shots on goal, so little efficient traffic around the net...

This stuff has got to become more effective if we're to get anything done in the playoffs.

Speaking of which, are we about to be the only playoff team in the league to enter the playoffs without a single 70 point player?

 

[PK Cronin]

Barzal plays with Bailey and Kuhnhackl, then proceeds to struggle to put up points. Everyone complained that the wingers weren't talented enough to put up points with. Bailey continued to put up points though, but continued to get ripped for being inconsistent and unproductive.

Bailey plays with Filppula and Kuhnhackl on the third line, with third line minutes, then proceeds to struggle to put up points for the first time all season. People get on Bailey for not being able to put up points.

Up until this current stretch Bailey hadn't gone more than two games without getting a point all season. Don't you think it might be connected to playing on the third line in a different role with less minutes? From February 1 until March 5, when this current streak started, Bailey was tied for the team lead with points in 13 of 17 games. The only other forward in double digits was Nelson, and that's who he was tied with.

 

[BossyMVP]

Forget Bailey...where the hell is Ladd? Anyone with a heart beat is better than Ladd...but even a dead person laying down in front of the crease may be better. At least a puck can deflect off of their motionless body.

 

[Uncle Duke]

I don’t think Bailey came back From the Bahamas from the all star break.

Yesterday’s performance would get them destroyed by Boston/Tampa, etc. But Thurs/Sat’s performance would have them going blow for blow with anyone. When this team plays to its full ability, it’s a wonderful thing to see. Conversely, the flawed version of themselves is frustrating. Unfortunately, there’s not much room for error when they aren’t on their game. Yesterday was.....fortunate. But I guess yesterday was as fortunate as Saturday was unfortunate. At this point, splitting a road B2B isn’t the worst thing in the world.

There is no room for error when we are on our game either. With rare exceptions, we are in every game, but so is our opponent.

 

[Le Grec]

Where the hell has Bailey been?

Absolutely no excuse whatsoever to be disappearing in this manner, not when you're getting upwards of 5 MM per season.

He hasn't gathered a point in at least 5 (I think it's now 6) games. But it's not just that... I haven't seen him involved in a dangerous offensive play in weeks. And now we're in a phase where HE has to be one of the leaders. Instead, he's wilted away.

In general, the offense last night, like on other nights, was very disappointing, because it is working so hard and creating next to no dangerous chances.

Some might ask how the hell to play against a guy like Stalock and not bombard this guy with shots of all sorts and angles right from the get-go?

Ok, so Trotz seems like the low shotcount approach the best. I guess he feels it takes the goalie out of the game.

But does Beauvillier EVER hit the net?

How many of our guys had their shots thwarted by poke checks?

How many pucks have been bouncing over our players' stick blades when they've tried to shoot.

More importantly, how often does this team put a one-timer on the net? We hardly ever see these boys putting each other in a position to take a good, hard one-timer.

So little danger, so few shots on goal, so little efficient traffic around the net...

This stuff has got to become more effective if we're to get anything done in the playoffs.

Speaking of which, are we about to be the only playoff team in the league to enter the playoffs without a single 70 point player?

Agree with all of this.

I don't care about points necessarily, but Bailey's play without the puck has been horrid. I think I saw him touch the puck twice yeasterday! Unacceptable...

The bottom 6, when healthy, is fine.
The top 6 has been shit, and I'm not talking about just goals.
Barzal seems to be shying away from the physical play, causing him to cough up the puck easily.
Lee does his thing, but never actually creates any offence.
Ladd looks tired and disinterested.
Beau is weak and has lost his confidence.
Eberle has played well, but he's no game breaker.

The most consistent player on the top lines this year has been Nelson, how f***ed is that?

 

[Doshell Propivo]

I thought Ladd was great. He threw my son a puck during warm ups. Can't ask for much more than that.

 

[Lame Lambert]

I thought Ladd was great. He threw my son a puck during warm ups. Can't ask for much more than that.

Did he throw out his back trying to get the puck over the glass?

 

[Chapin Landvogt]

Did he throw out his back trying to get the puck over the glass?

If not then, then surely in one of his half-hearted dives or jumps in recent games.

The dude plays like a friggin' fish out of water. I don't know how much longer I can watch it.

 

[crasherino]

There is no room for error when we are on our game either. With rare exceptions, we are in every game, but so is our opponent.

Most games we play are close, that is certainly true. But in that Montreal game and Red Wing game, we were clearly the better team. In the first one, Carey Price stood on his head and in the second one, we were just unlucky. It wouldn't have been crazy for either game to be 4-1/5-2. It didn't work that way but I'm guessing if you looked at the scoring chances or other stats that I don't know how to follow, they would have been pretty one sided.

 

[Uncle Duke]

Barzal plays with Bailey and Kuhnhackl, then proceeds to struggle to put up points. Everyone complained that the wingers weren't talented enough to put up points with. Bailey continued to put up points though, but continued to get ripped for being inconsistent and unproductive.

Bailey plays with Filppula and Kuhnhackl on the third line, with third line minutes, then proceeds to struggle to put up points for the first time all season. People get on Bailey for not being able to put up points.

Up until this current stretch Bailey hadn't gone more than two games without getting a point all season. Don't you think it might be connected to playing on the third line in a different role with less minutes? From February 1 until March 5, when this current streak started, Bailey was tied for the team lead with points in 13 of 17 games. The only other forward in double digits was Nelson, and that's who he was tied with.

Bailey is a middle-tier second or even third line NHL forward who's going to get you 15 goals and 50+ points every year. He's going to have his droughts just like every other player not named McDavid or Kucherov goes through but as you point out, he's been our most consistent point producer all year. He never was, never is and was never expected to be a dominant corner or wall man. Like every other forward on our team, he would benefit greatly from having a (note I did not say "another" since we don't have one) top tier goal scorer or two added to the roster. Actually, I'm conflicted about that parenthetical comment, because purely by the numbers, Lee is a top-tier goal scorer, just not the kind Bailey is going to benefit from as much as from a sniper type.

The Bailey ripping on these boards is just tiresome but the dogs have their bone - and have for years apparently - and they're not letting go.

 

[ndgolden]

Agree with all of this.

I don't care about points necessarily, but Bailey's play without the puck has been horrid. I think I saw him touch the puck twice yeasterday! Unacceptable...

The bottom 6, when healthy, is fine.
The top 6 has been ****, and I'm not talking about just goals.
Barzal seems to be shying away from the physical play, causing him to cough up the puck easily.
Lee does his thing, but never actually creates any offence.
Ladd looks tired and disinterested.
Beau is weak and has lost his confidence.
Eberle has played well, but he's no game breaker.

The most consistent player on the top lines this year has been Nelson, how ****ed is that?

But despite all this, somehow this team is in first place....... Living on Satan's island I guess.

 

[Uncle Duke]

Most games we play are close, that is certainly true. But in that Montreal game and Red Wing game, we were clearly the better team. In the first one, Carey Price stood on his head and in the second one, we were just unlucky. It wouldn't have been crazy for either game to be 4-1/5-2. It didn't work that way but I'm guessing if you looked at the scoring chances or other stats that I don't know how to follow, they would have been pretty one sided.

I think you just made my point for me.

This isn't about a game or two, this is the whole season. Whether we dominate possession and shots or not, our games are close because we can't score. Fortunately our D and goaltending have been able to hold leads. While my blood pressure would benefit from us putting teams away earlier, the forward looking part of me thinks it's great that we are playing these kinds of games this season. The level of calm and poise that our young D corp are showing with the puck under pressure in our own zone has improved so much from the start of the season to now. That experience will stand them in very good stead in the long run.

 

[Le Grec]

But despite all this, somehow this team is in first place....... Living on Satan's island I guess.

Don't get me wrong, when this team plays, it plays, and they are hard to beat. And I'm not complaining about this season. It's an A+ season once they clinch the playoffs.

But as Lou said, this is an evaluation season, and there are some kinks that need to be worked out for them to take the next step...

 

[Frankie41987]

Don't get me wrong, when this team plays, it plays, and they are hard to beat. And I'm not complaining about this season. It's an A+ season once they clinch the playoffs.

But as Lou said, this is an evaluation season, and there are some kinks that need to be worked out for them to take the next step...

I don’t get this “evaluation season” stuff. This was an evaluation season when we thought we were going to be terrible in order to figure out what parts of the team worked and didn’t work in order to reconstruct for the future. But now we are a first place team and it’s March. this isn’t an “evaluation season” anymore, we are trying to win it all and should go all in.

 

[PK Cronin]

Forget Bailey...where the hell is Ladd? Anyone with a heart beat is better than Ladd...but even a dead person laying down in front of the crease may be better. At least a puck can deflect off of their motionless body.

He can't move anymore. He wants to throw the body and wants to get into scoring position, he's just unable to anymore. Very weak on his skates and seems like his balance is terrible, and I'd guess it's from skating upright the way he does.

I don’t get this “evaluation season” stuff. This was an evaluation season when we thought we were going to be terrible in order to figure out what parts of the team worked and didn’t work in order to reconstruct for the future. But now we are a first place team and it’s March. this isn’t an “evaluation season” anymore, we are trying to win it all and should go all in.

How do you go "all in" at this point?

Also, which players are the core of this team that will be here for years to come?

 

[Frankie41987]

He can't move anymore. He wants to throw the body and wants to get into scoring position, he's just unable to anymore. Very weak on his skates and seems like his balance is terrible, and I'd guess it's from skating upright the way he does.



How do you go "all in" at this point?

Also, which players are the core of this team that will be here for years to come?

Well if your purpose was to evaluate at this point, you could bring up players like aho, or play ho-sang in order to see how the fit for next season or to see whether some of the older players are expendable.
What does “evaluation season” mean in your terms? To me it sounds like not having a lot of expectations and being ok if they get bounced in the first round.