GDT: Game 45: Pens @ Avs; 10AM GST+8 Saturday (like 7pm Fri local); Which team shows up?

[SnizzNasty88]

Really all you have to do is read the comments about rants. The Avs are our favorite team as well fyi

The Avs are your guy’s favourite team too? You don’t say...

 

[SnizzNasty88]

I think he's injured and not playing 100% could be a season ending injury requiring surgery. It makes no sense to be so dominant all last year and the start of this season until he went out with injury and now he comes back and is playing like a floater

Makes sense, thanks for your response. I just hope he can find that extra gear he has because he’s a big part of the Avs and I really want to see him do well

 

[drhiii]

Watching Bednar's bedtime story post game... he is jumpy, placid, flaccid, nervous laughter... and get this, he actually looked over his shoulder a couple of times. Like someone was coming for him. He's a nice fellow and all... but stick a fork in it... like last year. Unpopular opinion but you're cooked when you are debating with the reporters. The big takeway this post wrap was "talk". They players need to "talk". And yet again.. which is what really irks me about this guy.. he never, ever takes responsibility. Blames everything and everyone but himself.

This is NOT going to get any better kids. Nice guy for sure. But would I follow him up a hill if he said charge? Nawp. And I doubt many of his players would either.

I projected end of Feb. That may be too kind.

Flame me. Unpopular opinions for sure.

 

[SoundwaveIsCharisma]

Bednar has the audacity to stand there and say he wished his team was more vocal and that "all of the best teams are more vocal." Well great. You're the head coach. This is YOUR team. You ****ing TELL them to be vocal. You call a mother****ing timeout and tell them to be vocal. This chicken**** mentality is wearing thin.

I've stated this before. I think Bednar is the perfect coach for a speedy, but lesser skilled team. I'm yet to be convinced he can take full advantage of his skill players outside of "Nate, go play hero hockey"

 

[Balthazar]

Bednar has the audacity to stand there and say he wished his team was more vocal and that "all of the best teams are more vocal." Well great. You're the head coach. This is YOUR team. You ****ing TELL them to be vocal. You call a mother****ing timeout and tell them to be vocal. This chicken**** mentality is wearing thin.

What are you talking about? More vocal about what?

 

[the_fan]

Why does this team go through the same struggle every year and at the same time of the season. Everything is the same where both goalies can't stop pucks, defense sucks etc....

 

[dahrougem2]

It didn't happen often and he got lucky a couple of times. He's talented but he isn't a good hockey player.

I've noticed you like to use this a TON. Not just in terms of Burakovsky but in general.

All teams/players get lucky. They also get unlucky. It happens, and over the course of a season it usually tends to even out. So I'm not sure why you continue to harp on things like luck.

 

[The Merchant]

What are you talking about? More vocal about what?

Basically saying he wished his players would communicate with each other more on the ice.

 

[Stapler]

Rants is slow ass molasses could it be he grew to his big frame gained some muscle over the year and is simply too slow now seems like he is stuck in the mud just plodding slowwww.. Or hopefully its just the injury that is still affecting him maybe and he will be back in top form

 

[Balthazar]

I've noticed you like to use this a TON. Not just in terms of Burakovsky but in general.

All teams/players get lucky. They also get unlucky. It happens, and over the course of a season it usually tends to even out. So I'm not sure why you continue to harp on things like luck.

I honestly don't remember using this word a lot.

 

[S E P H]

When everyone was injured Mack carried like 70% of the offense. There's no doubt in my mind that without Mack we are a non-playoff team.

My theory is...even though MacKinnon played at a MVP x2 level when Landeskog and Mikko went down to injury, it seemed those injuries created a "score by committee" bond with the team. Sure MacK did a lot of heavy-lifting, but everyone was scoring from Donskoi, Bura, Compher (assists'), Calvert, and even Nichushkin.

This hasn't been the same team in terms of impressive play since both of them have come back (last truly dominating performance I thought was against the Jets). I suggest it is because the rest of the team is thinking they don't have to do as much as they did without them. It isn't a hard work algorithm and more of a mental one that is extremely hard to explain. Honestly, the best thing they can do now is start from the ground up and build their confidence/swagger again by buying in Bednar's system.

The only player who has consistently looked useless both when our first line went down has been Jost, but his tenth overall selection allows him to play his "get out of jail free card".

Third period? None. Best chance we had was Rantanen on the PP but that was a horrible pass by Mackinnon. Second best chance was when Makar shot it and Calvert tipped it. I didnt think we were anything special in the third at all in terms of chances. 35/60 minute effort tonight. Not good enough to win in this league. They played hard but other than Mackinnon can you recall anyone else creating good chances? Makar to Landy before the Rust goal maybe?

That's where I am in agreement with you, I didn't see any of our possession stats, but based on the eye test neither team had an up over the other in the third. I would say that we competed well with them, but again it was their C+ team and in the end that simply isn't good enough. I thought Compher looked good as well, he's had a solid week of hockey regardless of if the points are coming or not.

My cousin was at the game and he texted me that Avs played like they couldn't set anything up.

 

[henchman21]

Basically saying he wished his players would communicate with each other more on the ice.

It is hard when so many only speak Russian or English.

 

[dahrougem2]

This team has 3 wins over its last 11 games, one of which was against New Jersey.

In our 3 wins, we've outscored teams 19-8.

In our 8 losses, we've been outscored 32-20.

This team bleeds goals against these days. It's a big, big problem. Something has to be righted.

 

[Pierce Hawthorne]

Watching Bednar's bedtime story post game... he is jumpy, placid, flaccid, nervous laughter... and get this, he actually looked over his shoulder a couple of times. Like someone was coming for him. He's a nice fellow and all... but stick a fork in it... like last year. Unpopular opinion but you're cooked when you are debating with the reporters. The big takeway this post wrap was "talk". They players need to "talk". And yet again.. which is what really irks me about this guy.. he never, ever takes responsibility. Blames everything and everyone but himself.

This is NOT going to get any better kids. Nice guy for sure. But would I follow him up a hill if he said charge? Nawp. And I doubt many of his players would either.

I projected end of Feb. That may be too kind.

Flame me. Unpopular opinions for sure.

Good grief. Almost worth becoming a bad team again just so the trolls would go back under the bridge.

 

[S E P H]

It is hard when so many only speak Russian or English.

We might have to start strapping skates on translators.

 

[dahrougem2]

I don't know what people are expecting from Bednar in post game press conferences?

He's not Torts. He isn't going to give you crazy quotes.

 

[JLo217]

When does Bednar get fired? Deboer is out there....

 

[The Kingslayer]

Why does this team go through the same struggle every year and at the same time of the season. Everything is the same where both goalies can't stop pucks, defense sucks etc....

I didnt think our defense was bad at all. We limited the Pens pretty well. The goaltending however has been unacceptable. Doesnt matter who is in the net. its 3 goals against almost always because the goalies are letting in some soft soft goals. 2 five hole goals against tonight is very unacceptable in this league. Now they have to wait until Tuesday for the Stars to son them again.

 

[avspatti]

I don't know what people are expecting from Bednar in post game press conferences?

He's not Torts. He isn't going to give you crazy quotes.

Bob Hartley : He 'as magical 'ands.

 

[drhiii]

Oh, and since I am raining on the parade, one more.

What sux more than anything is the young 'uns who are playing for this team are learning how to lose. And how to explain losing. Makar's post game interview was stark. He is being required to come up with explanations about losing.

When young players are learning how to lose and put words to it... THAT is the worst. Makar's post game interview was for me the worst, achey breaky thing I have seen all year. Yeah, no big deal? Well, it is when you lack leadership from coaches who blame everything but themselves, and lack leadership from players who do not come from a winning pedigree.

This team has lacked real consistent leadership with winning genealogy in their leadership core. Lovely that players are given a 'C' at a starkly young age. And lovely that players are given a chance to 'grow in to' their roles. But of all the problems that infect this team... lack of leadership, and that goes to coaching as well as players... these things make a world of diff. These are vacuous in this team. The on air people incl former players are cautious to talk about this because it is not sexy, is unpopular. That dodge this topic like the plague. Beyond obvious.

Flames on. I deserve it. Just like same time last year.

PS, why spin up on it like this? Because I watched Bednar's post game where he yet again exhibited the absolute lack of core leadership that is infectious, and not in a good way.

 

[dahrougem2]

I didnt think our defense was bad at all. We limited the Pens pretty well. The goaltending however has been unacceptable. Doesnt matter who is in the net. its 3 goals against almost always because the goalies are letting in some soft soft goals. 2 five hole goals against tonight is very unacceptable in this league. Now they have to wait until Tuesday for the Stars to son them again.

Goals 2, 3, and 4 were just unacceptable tonight. Even if Malkin's goal was a good shot, Rust wasn't really screening Francouz at all. He was so far off his angle.

 

[SoundwaveIsCharisma]

We really need to be better at making the pass out of the zone. The chip off the boards kills the teams ability to transition quickly, which is the strong suit of the team, and often leads to turnovers and prolonged time in our own zone.

 

[henchman21]

We might have to start strapping skates on translators.

Can’t hurt

 

[The Merchant]

I don't know what people are expecting from Bednar in post game press conferences?

He's not Torts. He isn't going to give you crazy quotes.

That's not the point. He's pinpointing issues with the team that he has complete control over. If he has this helpless mentality it actually makes a ton of sense as to why this team can't seem to close out 3rd periods

 

[Pierce Hawthorne]

This loss honestly has nothing to do with anyone but Francouz. Plain and simple all 4 of the goals he let in were pretty soft. 3 of them were screen free shots that beat him clean and the 4th one was still a shot he needs to have.


On the flip side, yes Murray let in a weird one from Landy but the Mack shot was a no chance goal.


The Avs played a game that was deserving of 2 points. It just was. 5on5 the stats were very even.


The difference ultimately came down to our goalie allowing one more softie than the other goalie.


The dumb thing about HFAvs is that unless it's a blowout win folks are gonna nitpick at every mistake inside a game when in reality every team makes 15+ mistakes every game. That's how shots, scoring chances, and goals are generated.


The Avs are one of the more stingy teams overall in giving up these chances but HFAvs has literally 0 understanding of long term sample sizes and focuses exclusively on what's happening right now and nothing else. Tonight we lost a tight game so we suck and we're in the Lafrenniere sweepstakes.