Assuming the Pens don't win the Cup, where does this season rank in terms of disappointment?

[KIRK]

OH yeah in 2000 I wasn't expecting much, just that crazy OT was painful. As a G myself I guess I felt it more.

I still have 1993 far and away the worst. Didn't Barrasso get arrested in a bar fight after that, or somesuch stupidity?

That fight was after 1994: LetsGoPens.com • View topic - The infamous Froggy's brawl in 1994

 

[Honour Over Glory]

I absolutely hate comparing it to another season, so I won't.

The disappointments for me...

• Our Captain playing lazy for stretches, not really taking initiative with the whole team meeting thing that was long over due and still wasn't done.
• The team forcing another Assistant Coach to Sullivan, this time it really hasn't worked, Rick was a better fit, they then got a passive puppet to be his replacement with like zero coaching experience.
• The lack of accountability. You can't talk the talk and then never walk the walk. You can't say a player needs to play less and in different situations and then literally never follow up with it. Like at all.
• A lot of mental errors by the coaching staff, one of the more consistent things this team has done is being inconsistent.
• The coaching staff making some rather bizarre choices with the line-up, the lack of ingenuity with the line-up, the stubbornness, and some other things. But in general, this team has a smart head coach that knows how to win, but he's been literally making it harder for himself by not even owning up to things he says he wants to do or should do and then he makes choices based on ego, if not ego then what else could it be? Logic would be absent in some of the choices.
• Some of the players just not playing their best, in other cases, some players not being in the right position on this team to succeed and then in most cases, a good mix of both.

To me, this playoffs is either going to be the situation that re-unites this team that needs to play united and hasn't for more than a few periods at a time during the season, or things come to a head, someone on the coaching staff is fired and it won't be Sullivan. Someone from the core is getting moved out and it won't be Sid, Geno, Phil, or Horny out of the elder statesmen and it definitely won't be Guentzel (hint, the hair or the help I've fallen and I can't seem to stop falling...).

This team is infuriating to watch this season, the moment you think they've turned a corner, they completely shit the bed, then they leave you with just enough of a decent effort to make you hope for a complete game all over again the next day and well, repeat the pattern. Then they'll give you a magnificent game or two in a row and then it's some average shit out of them again.

Yes the grind is hard, yes it's been two short off seasons, but if you aren't prepared for greatness or striving for it, then what are you doing playing this sport?

 

[Riptide]

I see a lot of hand-wringing in every GDT and PGT, which is par for the course around here. What I'm wondering though, is if you are honest with yourself, how disappointed will you be if the Pens don't win a third straight Cup this season?

Just like every year they don't win the cup... should they be eliminated from the POs, I'll be disappointed. However just like last year, I have zero expectations of them winning the cup. 2016 was different due to how well they were playing down the stretch. If they'd continued the play they had in Jan and Feb to the end of the season, then my expectations would be different... but seeing how they've kind of stumbled their way into the post season I'm not expecting a lot. Sure they'll go a round or three just based on their depth and talent alone, but to win it all you need more then that, and so far I haven't seen that. And as such, my expectations are tempered.

 

[JimmyTwoTimes]

Will only be disappointed if they get to the cup and lose.

If you get that far, theres no turning back. A must win or failure imo. Have that same view for every sport.

 

[Peat]

I think on sober reflection, I'm probably happier with the season than I was. 100 points while back to back Champions, with all that means, and with an absolute turd of a schedule is really good. Hard to get disappointed with the raw numbers. Watching the performances was a bit more up and down, but it was rarely dull and there were some great moments along the way such as God Mode Geno, Sid's mid air goals and so on. Had one blockbuster trade, two great steals from the bargain bin... it's been far from perfect, but its been a good hockey season.

Just wish Geno had got some silverware/100 points.

 

[KIRK]

Honestly, the only thing that will disappoint me from the Pens in the playoffs would be if they rolled over and played dead. Win or lose, I just want them to lay it all out there. From there, it's as much about getting the breaks and bounces as anything.

 

[The Shovel Penguin]

If the Pens don't threepeat, I'll be way less disappointed this time than I was in 1993. That team was so stacked and it just felt like the Cup really was theirs to lose. Mario's comeback, that winning streak... everything just seemed to be shaping up to cementing them as a dynasty, but then...

This year, everything is just mud I just keep wondering when they'll run out of gas. (I said that last year, too though) I'll never say never but in the big picture, I can't really bring myself to be all that upset if they don't threepeat. I might be annoyed if they play lazy and arrogant, but in the big picture, a threepeat -- what a thing to try to accomplish these days. These last 2 years have been amazing.

 

[Ugene Magic]

Will only be disappointed if they get to the cup and lose.

If you get that far, theres no turning back. A must win or failure imo. Have that same view for every sport.

I don't think that would even disappoint me. That would make the tally to 5 finals and a ECF out of this core.

The only disappointment is all the time lost due to injuries and even more long runs that would have cemented this core well ahead of the Lemieux lead core.

I don't remember who said it here recently, but this team is the poster child of what could've been.

 

[KIRK]

If the Pens don't threepeat, I'll be way less disappointed this time than I was in 1993. That team was so stacked and it just felt like the Cup really was theirs to lose. Mario's comeback, that winning streak... everything just seemed to be shaping up to cementing them as a dynasty, but then...

This year, everything is just mud I just keep wondering when they'll run out of gas. (I said that last year, too though) I'll never say never but in the big picture, I can't really bring myself to be all that upset if they don't threepeat. I might be annoyed if they play lazy and arrogant, but in the big picture, a threepeat -- what a thing to try to accomplish these days. These last 2 years have been amazing.

Yeah, this was me in '93 . . .

 

[Gurglesons]

Welp. First round is against the Flyers so we HAVE to win that.

 

[Riptide]

Welp. First round is against the Flyers so we HAVE to win that.

Agreed. In no way shape or form would I be happy losing to Philly. I really do not want to lose to Washington/Columbus in the 2nd round either. So it looks like we need to get to the 3rd round.

 

[Gurglesons]

Agreed. In no way shape or form would I be happy losing to Philly. I really do not want to lose to Washington/Columbus in the 2nd round either. So it looks like we need to get to the 3rd round.

Caps and BJs have been crushed enough by us. Flyers fans will say our back to back was because we didn’t have to play them..

 

[Andy99]

As long as we don’t beat ourselves and someone playing better or more lucky takes us out, that’s all you can ask for...I won’t be disappointed....