Liiga playoffs 15-16

[rduck1]

JYP's turn to put in a garbage performance tonight, game 3 goes to HIFK 7 - 1. Surprised to see such a professional and experienced team go off their gameplan so badly this far into the season.

UPDATE:
Game 4 is (probably) over in 2 minutes. 3-0 to JYP... I don't think there has ever been a team more inconsistent than this HIFK team. This series is stupid.

 

[Kibe]

Refs are a joke in this league. http://giphy.com/gifs/3oGRFl453TAoSal8Yw. JYP player just looking at his pass and not concentrating on the game at all, and somehow the ref saw that as a penalty and that changed the whole course of the game, since the start of the game is wery important. Elkins penalty was correct but that wouldnt have happened without the joke call for Luttinen.

 

[rduck1]

Refs are a joke in this league. http://giphy.com/gifs/3oGRFl453TAoSal8Yw. JYP player just looking at his pass and not concentrating on the game at all, and somehow the ref saw that as a penalty and that changed the whole course of the game, since the start of the game is wery important. Elkins penalty was correct but that wouldnt have happened without the joke call for Luttinen.

They could've let it go, since it's the playoffs and it's a bit of a light call and all that, but I think the situation does fill the requirements of the call. The refereeing has been pretty good this season IMO, though obviously there's still room for improvement. And it's not like you have to concede goals short-handed...

 

[wloff]

Have to give props to Liiga for the schedule, game on every day from Monday to Saturday (if it goes that far).

Agreed, really loving this schedule. Also allows me as an IFK fan to see some matches from the other series live (cause I'm obviously glued to our own games when we're playing).

 

[rduck1]

HIFK goes to the finals; JYP goes down in 6. Surprisingly poor performance from them at home. They even gave up trying with the empty net with around 3 minutes left, and just completely capitulated soon after. Would've expected them to keep pushing until the buzzer sounds, especially in front of their home crowd. Oh well, on to the finals... Excited to see who will face this enigma of a team there!

 

[Kibe]

Teemu Ramstedt!... Beautiful!... Nuff said

 

[Kibe]

So the final pair is set. Im waiting for an epic series.

 

[rduck1]

So the final pair is set. Im waiting for an epic series.

It's going to be an absolutely mental final. I expect the games to be very open, with huge momentum shifts and individual talent on display. I also expect HIFK to play their best and worst matches of the season, because that's just how they roll apparently.

And finally, I expect to go absolutely insane... The hype, my god, the hype!

 

[rduck1]

What a farce... What an absolute farce of a final this is turning out to be. Rules don't apply to Tappara at all apparently.

 

[SoupyFIN]

What a farce... What an absolute farce of a final this is turning out to be. Rules don't apply to Tappara at all apparently.

It sucks that it had to be a GWG, but HIFK did have a clear offside goal earlier this week.

I do somewhat agree with the refs decision that Mäntylä didn't make it to the bench in time because of that collission, it would've been close without it and I doubt the refs would've called it with how little time was left, the entire game was kind of a free-for-all anyway.

 

[FiLe]

I have to agree what Jyri Rönn said about it: It was a lose-lose situation. Either you allow the goal, which gets the HIFK fans fuming, or you disallow it and call a "too many men on ice" penalty and grant HIFK a PP - but then all the Tappara fans would have been fuming, because the line change was disrupted by a referee who stood in the way.

So no wonder they chose "not to see" it - after all, refs can only call the situations they see. It's even in the rules.

 

[rduck1]

I'm not only talking about the too many players non-call... There was a lot that went called in this game. Some for both sides, more for the guests. They are rather famous for making tons of borderline infractions, so a tolerant line favours them heavily. In addition there were situations last game that I highly question: Zaborsky suspended for an accidental high-stick(which I'm fine with in general, it was a bad play), and then Mäntylä's jumping headshot gets 2+10.

Now, I recognize that I'm liable to be enormously biased on this matter, but it really does look like the refereeing has favoured one team in the last two games(and they've been quite poor all round given the offside goal the other way as well).

 

[LemmyUlanov55]

Teppo Numminen still looks like he quit hockey yesterday. He's been on at the intermission, unfortunately I've no clue what he said.

 

[rduck1]

HIFK completes the choke, as is the tradition. Completely lifeless performance in an elimination game. Tappara are champions.

 

[SoupyFIN]

HIFK completes the choke, as is the tradition. Completely lifeless performance in an elimination game. Tappara are champions.

I think HIFK is going to be the favourite to win next year if they can retain the core, I've only read that Elkins is leaving, though there's lots of guys with expiring contracts.

Tappara should be interesting since many of their veterans are going + Laine potentially, they picked a good time to finally win it.

 

[Uncle Scrooge]

Congrats to Tappara, they deserved it.

HIFK didn't score a single PP goal, lost every single tight game and went 0/3 on the road. Törmänen even expressed his disappointment in Peltola playing this game 6 after he almost got his eye poked out in game 4. Zaborsky got suspended for 1 game, so why is it a problem Peltola didn't lose more than 1 game ? And the way he *****ed about the non call too many men long after game 5 was over, i just don't think he did a very good job focusing on the right things..

Make the finals 4 years in a row, lose first 3 and then win it all. That's determination right there and we witnessed something that will always remain in the history books. This is what sports is about.

 

[rduck1]

I think HIFK is going to be the favourite to win next year if they can retain the core, I've only read that Elkins is leaving, though there's lots of guys with expiring contracts.

I've heard otherwise:

• Taipalus and Teppo are gone.
• Ramstedt, Zaborsky, Auvitu and Puustinen want new challenges from what I've heard.
• Järvinen and Liivik might have KHL offers.
• Partanen might sign with another team in Liiga in search of a bigger role.
• Husso is probably going to America. Maybe Hintz too. Aulie will get a tryout.
• Elkins and Grillfors are probably happy to stay, but might get better money elsewhere.
• Rask, Taimi, Luttinen, Leino, Nykopp, Ã…sten, Lankinen and Tuomisto will probably stay along with some reservists.
• I don't know what Generous will do.

So it might blow up pretty badly... But who knows.

 

[Ghost Bear]

Stupid penalty by Jasu in the end. I hate the fact that we scored ~1 second after the whistle. What if the refs had blown the whistle earlier on the Jasu penalty?
If only Auvitu hadn't missed that slapper in the dying seconds............

The game 5 too many men on ice -goal as well. I'm so salty...