Post-Game Talk: Lightning 4, Penguins 3 - Goodnight Saigon

[EightyOne]

@Honour Over Glory It's not that I think Sullivan did a great job last year, but he did make the playoffs and did only lose in the 2nd round. It's hard to call that a huge failure after back to back Cups.

The optics would look bad if we fired him now. I don't care about optics but I'm sure JR and the Pens ownership does. So we'll see what happens.

One line got them to playoffs once the new year rolled around.

They should have never beat the Flyers----who were utter garbage--in round one. Lucky WSH didnt sweep them.

 

[Turin]

Ah. The group think narratives are stirring. I look forward to them being parroted after everything that goes wrong. “Sullivan wasn’t even a good coach in 2017, losing Letang want even a big deal” “Pens sucked last year too, their horrible PDO at ES for two months represent the entire season”.

 

[Bingo71]

This is a very, very bad team and frustration is boiling over on a nightly basis.

This team used to be the one pissing other ones off and driving them to stupid penalties. Now it’s the Pens’ stars that go off the rails every night out of frustration and cost the team.

Lack of discipline. Lack of execution. Lack of desire. Lack of everything...

 

[Honour Over Glory]

@Honour Over Glory It's not that I think Sullivan did a great job last year, but he did make the playoffs and did only lose in the 2nd round. It's hard to call that a huge failure after back to back Cups.

The optics would look bad if we fired him now. I don't care about optics but I'm sure JR and the Pens ownership does. So we'll see what happens.

I don't know if it looks bad at all. This team is almost dead last in the East with the same issues as last year with coaching, not being solved and JR is going up and down yelling "I'll trade you, and you and you..." but that's not the solve here.

This team needs a shake up, that much is true.

If firing a coach that people think has been fantastic when he clearly hasn't as of late and this is definitely not recent-ism as its something that has been surfacing since the 2016-17 season, people might not want to admit it or remember it, but it was starting to happen back then and then continued to for large parts of last season.

I even hate when people say "well, we were injured too" well you know what, the caps were as well and I think Backstrom wasn't in some or most of that series for them, excuses.

Maybe JR needs to call Sullivan out, finally, and say "you know, I can make the trades, but I need a coach that is also willing to make the right changes."

 

[Turin]

One line got them to playoffs once the new year rolled around.

They should have never beat the Flyers----who were utter garbage--in round one. Lucky WSH didnt sweep them.

This is not how history went down. Stop.

 

[Gurglesons]

Well its equal parts Sullivan and Rutherford. I think Rikola could be something. He is at least as good as ruh and could get better.

Foolish though. Riikola would make no difference when you have Maatta and Johnson literally needing to play the power play / pk.

 

[mpp9]

Hard to get mad at this team. Rutherford over paid fringe top four D and it is seriously biting him in the ass. When Oleksiak is your third best defenseman what are you supposed to do as a forward?

Subtracting Johnson or Maatta from our lineup and adding Rik isn't gonna change the result though.

We need a legit #3D. And they're extremely difficult to acquire. We were in the running for McDonagh last deadline for a reason. JR knows this.

 

[Pancakes]

Hard to get mad at this team. Rutherford over paid fringe top four D and it is seriously biting him in the ass. When Oleksiak is your third best defenseman what are you supposed to do as a forward?

It's seriously awful. Half of this roster needs to be blown up and re-tooled. I don't think JR can do it in just one year.

I think we're doomed this year.

 

[Ryder71]

Can Brassard be healthy and return now?. I'm done with Sheahan/Grant/Cullen.

I've tried to be patient with Sheahan but he's god awful. Enough is enough, he's a 4th line caliber center. The evidence is sufficient enough IMO to call him that. He's a mess!

 

[AuroraBorealis]

What line would he play?

 

[KIRK]

Gotta add this folks: I'm not sure the score is any different if Sid plays. Would the PP have looked anything like it did tonight? And, how much would we have pressed offensively and in the process exposed ourselves defensively . . . you know, like we have 2/3 of the time this year?

You know, this reminded me of a Mike Johnston game . . . keep 'em close but find a way to lose.

 

[AverageJoeFan]

7 of 8?.. seems like forever since that's happened.

 

[KIRK]

I've tried to be patient with Sheahan but he's god awful. Enough is enough, he's a 4th line caliber center. The evidence is sufficient enough IMO to call him that. He's a mess!

Saying Sheahan can **** off would understate my feelings.

I'd literally send him to WBS if nobody wants him in a trade. Maybe we'll get lucky and someone will take that 2M albatross off our hands and we can play TB.

 

[The Old Master]

He was in the group of 15 who did nothing.

Hard to win with 3 players playing.

he just got off the plane, he gets a break for now.

 

[Honour Over Glory]

Well its equal parts Sullivan and Rutherford. I think Rikola could be something. He is at least as good as ruh and could get better.

The usage of Riikola has been bizarre.

They don't play him when they should. He isn't in the AHL playing more when he could be. So he's sitting there rotting with Sprong, just because the coach refuses to give them better opportunities.

 

[EightyOne]

This is not how history went down. Stop.

Please, f***ing explain how last year went?

I remember constant 7-0 drubbings. A team that was out of playoffs. That had to pull out a bunch of wins to even qualify. A forward group that was lazy as f***. A defensive group that was turned around more than anything. A struggle to get the upper hand on the Flyers. And shit against Washington. Is that the magical team coached by Magic Mike? Is that success?

What happened in your reality?

 

[KIRK]

One game, but I'm not as much a fan in practice of the Pearson-Horny combo as @pixiesfanyo was in theory before this game.

 

[Bnat66]

I wish I could find this comic I saw years ago that just said "Coaching in the NHL" it just shows the coach behind the bench falling through a trap door lol would be surprising if Sullivan goes already

 

[Pancakes]

Gotta add this folks: I'm not sure the score is any different if Sid plays. Would the PP have looked anything like it did tonight? And, how much would we have pressed offensively and in the process exposed ourselves defensively . . . you know, like we have 2/3 of the time this year?

You know, this reminded me of a Mike Johnston game . . . keep 'em close but find a way to lose.

As much as Sully is annoying me, I think our problems are as much roster related as coach related.

What coach can cover up having to play Johnson, Oleksiak, Maatta, Ruhwedel for 30 minutes a game? Or a bottom six that can't score?

 

[dogthateats]

We lost to one of the best teams in the league who had two back to back 5 on 3’s. We were missing our #1 and #3 center and #3 d-man.

 

[Gurglesons]

One game, but I'm not as much a fan in practice of the Pearson-Horny combo as @pixiesfanyo was in theory before this game.

Pearson is going to take some adjustment. He played a sound game tonight, but he can’t be doing that with Malkin.

 

[KIRK]

Well, the good news for me?

Thats a winnable game vs one of the best teams with Sid+Brass+Scuhltz+Avg. Goaltending and better role players(some which may be down in Wilkes).

Pearson's production will come once he gets comfortable here.
First time on a line with G-Horny and they score at ES.

If JR ain't tradin' anyone soon?

Fix your goaltending. Fix your role players.

Of course, Pearson-Horny were every bit as challenged when it came to getting Geno the puck as Hags-Horny were.

I guess that I'm not sure if the goal was worth shutting Geno down 90% of their shifts together.

 

[Gurglesons]

As much as Sully is annoying me, I think our problems are as much roster related as coach related.

What coach can cover up having to play Johnson, Oleksiak, Maatta, Ruhwedel for 30 minutes a game? Or a bottom six that can't score?

100%.

Our terrible D from 15-16 and 16-17 has somehow gotten even worse with raises.

 

[Ryder71]

Saying Sheahan can **** off would understate my feelings.

I'd literally send him to WBS if nobody wants him in a trade. Maybe we'll get lucky and someone will take that 2M albatross off our hands and we can play TB.

He could not be any worse, give the kid a shot up here. Normally such players come up and give this team a shot in the arm.

 

[CallArnoldSlick]

#fiasco4kakko

 

[KIRK]

Pearson is going to take some adjustment. He played a sound game tonight, but he can’t be doing that with Malkin.

Not with Hornqvist on the other side.

 

[Darren McCord]

The usage of Riikola has been bizarre.

They don't play him when they should. He isn't in the AHL playing more when he could be. So he's sitting there rotting with Sprong, just because the coach refuses to give them better opportunities.

This is what is so frustrating. Early in the season you should be trying young guys seeing what you have and trying to cut dead weight. Instead they manage to add fat (Wilson)