Around the league: Playoffs II | Did I mention Calgary sucks? And also Winnipeg?

[mossey3535]

Gotta give Smith kudos for not sucking for most of the series like he did in the regular season, but IMO he just has situations where he has mental and/or technical lapses.

First goal bit of a fluke tip off a skate but he doesn't have the mobility to challenge really.

Second goal he looks the wrong way and his awkward edgework created that whole situation where there was room to bank it off him (He goes forward instead of staying on the goal line).

That last chance in close he has a perfectly sealed butterfly then spreads his knees for no reason, which is what causes it to be a much closer chance than it should have been.

Then he makes a couple of really good blocker saves with no stick. Go figure.

 

[Motte and Bailey]

Wow is Mike Smith ever fighting the puck tonight. Struggling to make routine saves.

 

[EpochLink]

When it comes down to physical playoff hockey, Flames are no match.
All their core players are either too scared to get hit or just inconsistent.

 

[mossey3535]

Kane usually rushes in to start and then slows at the hashmarks though does he not?1

Not all the time, I've seen him do both.

 

[MS]

Gotta give Smith kudos for not sucking for most of the series like he did in the regular season, but IMO he just has situations where he has mental and/or technical lapses.

First goal bit of a fluke tip off a skate but he doesn't have the mobility to challenge really.

Second goal he looks the wrong way and his awkward edgework created that whole situation where there was room to bank it off him (He goes forward instead of staying on the goal line).

That last chance in close he has a perfectly sealed butterfly then spreads his knees for no reason, which is what causes it to be a much closer chance than it should have been.

Then he makes a couple of really good blocker saves with no stick. Go figure.

I’m not an expert on goaltending technique but what I see is a guy flailing and making meals out of everything and turning simple plays into ‘great saves’ he then gets praised for.

 

[mossey3535]

I think he came in too slow for what he tried to do, need to try and do something to force the goalie to change their footwork a bit. Coming in like that with the puck positioned where it was (going off memory so lay be wrong that he had it directly in front of him) he didnt do anything to force the goalie into any kind of decision

No, Gaudreau deked to his forehand and Grubauer even puts his right knee down. Usually that means you have the goalie if you do what Gaudreau did and pull it ALL THE WAY to his backhand. But Grubauer got him with desperation splits.

 

[mossey3535]

I’m not an expert on goaltending technique but what I see is a guy flailing and making meals out of everything and turning simple plays into ‘great saves’ he then gets praised for.

Yeah I'm trying to be nice about it because he was so bad in the regular season that he wouldn't be saving these shots at all, he would just be getting lit up.

I do think if they had played Rittich they would have won one of the last two, especially after that game where he just got ventilated.

I predicted before the season started that Peter's inability to manage goalies might be an issue for this team. He made a mess of that in Carolina.

 

[Nomobo]

I’m starting to really feel sorry for Johnny...

 

[Blue and Green]

flames close to collapse.

Flames are allowing an average of more than 40 shots per 60 minutes so far in this series, including 14 in the 1st period tonight.

 

[Stormblessed]

No, Gaudreau deked to his forehand and Grubauer even puts his right knee down. Usually that means you have the goalie if you do what Gaudreau did and pull it ALL THE WAY to his backhand. But Grubauer got him with desperation splits.

But with the speed and puck positioning he had any goalie worth his salt will be deep enough to render a deke obsolete, that's why something needed to be done to alter his footwork and speed he was backing up with.

 

[krutovsdonut]

Gaudreau needs to simplify a bit, he was overthinking IMO, he shouldn't be doing dekes at this point of the game. He should go with speed and use his deceptive wrist shot for a higher chance to score. It's clear he has absolutely zero confidence right now as a player and is not usual self like he was in the regular season.

He was underwhelming last playoffs too.

i actually think thenopposite. he is far and away the best flame but he is totally alone out there. thenissue is he’s the only guy doing things and he is feeling it. his linemates are no help.

 

[Motte and Bailey]

I’m starting to really feel sorry for Johnny...

I think he’d be a lot better if he didn’t have to carry around that pigeon Monahan every night.

 

[Ace of Hades]

Horvat>Monahan

Hilarious how flames fans believe that boring Monahan is a tier or two above.

 

[mossey3535]

But with the speed and puck positioning he had any goalie worth his salt will be deep enough to render a deke obsolete, that's why something needed to be done to alter his footwork and speed he was backing up with.

No. If Gaudreau had read Grubauer biting with the first pad drop and gone five-hole (which was wide open), we wouldn't be having this conversation.

The funny thing is the next breakaway he does exactly what you guys say he should have been doing and then he misses the net.

It's hockey. Shit happens quickly. Him going fast on the first move doesn't guarantee that the move works, he might have just lost the handle at high speed.

 

[Svencouver]

Mike Smith blows.

You cannot say this after he's the only reason they werent blown out every game and swept

 

[mossey3535]

You cannot say this after he's the only reason they werent blown out every game and swept

Except I think that's an illusion. Yeah he's been better than the regular season but he's made a lot of shots harder than they need to be, and like I said above, he has lapses that have directly led to the goals they scored.

A more technical goalie probably makes all the saves Smith has, and saves some of the goals he let in. Yeah a couple of the more spectacular ones they might not make, but they also might not have put themselves in the predicament that Smith has inflicted on himself which required him to make that kind of save.

 

[Motte and Bailey]

I’m not sure how anyone ever got the impression that Mike Smith is good

 

[SeawaterOnIce]

Reffing this playoffs have been brutal. Weird calls.

 

[mossey3535]

DELETE

 

[Svencouver]

The flames simply cannot handle MacKs line. They are game-breakingly good.

 

[Svencouver]

Except I think that's an illusion. Yeah he's been better than the regular season but he's made a lot of shots harder than they need to be, and like I said above, he has lapses that have directly led to the goals they scored.

A more technical goalie probably makes all the saves Smith has, and saves some of the goals he let in. Yeah a couple of the more spectacular ones they might not make, but they also might not have put themselves in the predicament that Smith has inflicted on himself which required him to make that kind of save.

This is an awful take. He's been making almost FIFTY saves per game. He's been at close to a .950 sv percentage and the Flames are STILL losing. He is far and away the best performer on their team and one of the best performances of this playoffs so far next to Stone and MacK himself.

 

[mossey3535]

See like this last one, Smith's head tracks the puck but it's like he doesn't _see_ it. He doesn't get a good push across, and this time he doesn't get any extension on the lead leg, which is why the goal goes in. Also he is flopping forward on everything which shows a lack of balance and control. That's fine on a desperation backwards extension to try to save a goal that is going behind you, but if you're doing it on every shot it means you are struggling.

Also right here it is do or die. Pull him and put in Rittich.

 

[EpochLink]

So Mike Smith plays lights out last game, today he's giving up goal after goal.

 

[Motte and Bailey]

To me this flames team is the perfect example of the phenomenon of a team with high skills but no intangibles. No mental toughness no ability to fight through adversity. No ability to perform under pressure. These intangibles get underrated until the playoffs when they become front and centre for everyone to see how skill alone isnt enough.

 

[mossey3535]

This is an awful take. He's been making almost FIFTY saves per game. He's been at close to a .950 sv percentage and the Flames are STILL losing. He is far and away the best performer on their team and one of the best performances of this playoffs so far next to Stone and MacK himself.

No. Save volume looks good, but if you are failing to make the key saves, then it doesn't matter.

Especially if he is making mistakes that lead to the situations that the goals are scored on.

I've posted extensively on this throughout the Flames games in this thread.