Last night was the price we agreed to pay the hockey gods so Drury could score his first goal.
What's it going to take to get Svech to score then?
I don't think last night was as bad as everyone made it out to be. It was simply an example of what happens when we get off their game.
The first period was a prime example of what we want to do. Great defense, great pressure, and a lead. Couldn't have been a more perfect period.
Then, as we typically do, we shot ourselves in the foot. Even though the first two kills were great, all it took was a 10-second lapse near the end of each of them before it bit us in the ass. And then to take another penalty immediately after (and to have them score on it almost immediately), the shell shock was obvious.
But true to the coaching philosophy, they shook it off and gathered themselves and played well the rest of that period. Even made it a one-goal game.
Unfortunately, Raanta simply wasn't good enough. I don't blame him for the first three goals, as we did a pisspoor job of covering the three worst players to leave uncovered, but that 4th goal, he's got to have. The 5th goal he REALLY shouldn't give up. Everything after that was just a result of the team and Raanta giving up.
But yeah, letting star players like Stamkos, Point and Kucherov just weave through your team will end up with scores like last night. Especially when your own star players don't show up. The 4th line was the best one by a significant margin, and that's not going to win any games.
Honestly, I wish we could afford to scratch some of our players. Svech is being stupid, likely due to his scoring drought, and it CANNOT continue. Necas is being stupid, for reasons known only to him, but it's getting easier and easier to see him as expendable. Burns clearly needs to take a breather and get his head back in the game.