Post-Game Talk: MAFight Night in Pittsburgh, Penguins-5, Canadiens - 1

[ColePens]

And another point:

The game was ****ing over, done, after the 2nd period. Add that to the fact that they had the division locked up at Christmas, there was no reason not to play Megna the rest of the way. He's not TK, there is SOMETHING there, a diamond in the rough, and these ****ing morons are going to dismiss him into obscurity. I can't stand it.

This isn't just a new shiny toy w/ Megna. He absolutely is a diamond in the rough. Watching him live completely sold me. He has some real talent and skill. He also isn't afraid to throw his weight around. I'd actually like to see him be more mean.

Cole:

Crosby did have more than just 2 very good plays.. He hit that post (with Megna helping), he also skated like the wind through the 3 players in the neutral zone (3rd period) and had 3 another good chances (6 great chances overall). Could´ve had a hatty at least, if not more.

I can see the point, though. Sid is floating more than usual these days. Sochi definitely might be the reason why. Same with Kunitz, who´s almost invisible as of now.

That said, they can still produce something when not playing with Kobasew. (that´s a pretty big "when", though)

Kobasew is bad but Sid never really mails it in. His game is the exact opposite of lazy. Watching him be lazy is a huge disappointment. I know other players do it, but seeing #87 do it is weird.

Maybe Sid taking it easy in anticipation of tough game tomorrow night + knowing 71 in beast mode. The latter seems to happen with some frequency. It seems a little early to mail it in for the Olympics.

Like I said - possible.... but just so unlike #87.

Thanks for the feedback.

Question, since you watched live and I know you've been focusing on Maatta among other things . . .

The Maatta-Nisky pairing dealing with Boston or one of the big teams from the West . . . how much of a worry?

Like I say... the good and bad of Nisky/Maatta. Their top end skill is quite amazing. But both need to clean up their errors and play simple. A little more focus on defense would be legit. Their other talents are incredible.


Against Boston... I think it's more scheme than it is players. We need to have a MINDSET or a CULTURE of playing defense, hitting, and doing the small things. That culture is not there. It was in 2009.

 

[Michael8771*]

Give Sutter Gibbons, Megna, JJ, Bennett, or Vitale and watch him produce some secondary scoring. He's not ever going to be the most offensively explosive guy, but he has been severely hampered by players that this board complains about daily.

He also adds defensive and PK abilities. Crosby took a shift on the PK tonight because the Pens only had 3 forwards in the line-up who had any significant PK time (Adams, Glass & Sutter). Kobasew took the subsequent shifts but has had minimal time on PK duty. Give Sutter some more effective wingers, and the Pens actually might have a shut down line that's not Crosby-Kunitz-??

Out of curiousity, if they do move Sutter, who plays 3C? Who kills penalties? Who offers the defensive capabilities with offensive upside?

And quite a few 3c can do all these things you mentioned. You want to know who can replace Sutter? probably 2/3 of third line centers around the league, if not more. So if he's sent in a package deal, it shouldn't be all that arduous a process to replace him.

 

[Sidney the Kidney]

Kobasew is bad but Sid never really mails it in. His game is the exact opposite of lazy. Watching him be lazy is a huge disappointment. I know other players do it, but seeing #87 do it is weird.

I haven't liked his game for a while. In fact, the last time I thought he was "vintage Crosby" was before Malkin returned from injury, when Sid basically carried an AHL defense on his back.

Since Malkin's return, Sid does seem to be more in cruise control mode quite a bit of the time. His natural talent shows through a few times a game, but for a lot of the game he looks like he's coasting.

If he is just coasting until the Olympics, hopefully he goes into beast mode as soon as he returns. Kunitz seems to disappear when Crosby isn't playing well. Not sure what to make of that.

 

[WayneSid9987]

- Crosby: Yes.. he had 2 amazing plays (catching the puck off his skate and splitting the defense & his tip-in). I think that was amazing. But his effort (live) is pathetic. BIG loops and lazy lethargic skating. Pathetic skating in terms of what Sid does. He was just looping around in the d-zone while Briere (his man) was right on our door step wide open. Luckily it didn't hurt us. Sid looks like he's mailing it in and conserving energy for the Olympics.

I do not mean to be hard on him, but watching him live multiple times and knowing his game... I was disappointed. You could see he is just conserving energy. Maybe that is a good thing?

Please get rid of Koby, Adams, and Glass.

I'm just curious what you thought of Kunitz's game?
I wouldn't get rid of Adams but Sill in place of Glass and any WBS'er instead of Koby is fine with me.

 

[drpepper]

And quite a few 3c can do all these things you mentioned. You want to know who can replace Sutter? probably 2/3 of third line centers around the league, if not more. So if he's sent in a package deal, it shouldn't be all that arduous a process to replace him.

Do you have any specific players in mind or trades that could happen?

Obviously lots of players do similar things or do things better, but Pittsburgh doesn't have them. The question to me would be: how easy is it to get them?

 

[fate]

+Jokinen

 

[stefanh]

There was some insanely slow combinations out there tonight.

Glass - Adams - Engelland
Pyatt - Adams - Engelland

I'm not against playing engo as forward but you can't have him out with other slow players it spells all kinds of trouble and they were getting pinned back.

Megna 7 minutes, this just aint gonna cut it. We lead the damn division with 15 points. It's a miracle that he's having noticable shifts with that icetime.

 

[ColePens]

Another thing to mention tonight. I swear I'm not harping on DB, but I didn't see much change in the system. In the beginning we came up with speed then went right back into our stretches. We also did pretty much the same exact **** as always on the powerplay. Sometimes it works and sometimes it doesn't. Our skill took over tonight. I was hoping to see some system changes.


One moment really pissed me off w/ Letang. I think it was 3-1 and we were on the PP. Letang PINCHES on a 60/40 puck. That would have left a 2 on 1 or at best a 2 on 2 against two offensive players. Tangers needs to realize that when we are up 2 goals, the focus is on defending the lead. He was so focused on offense and it pissed me off. It didn't bite us in the ass, but it was close. It's those mental decisions that can be the difference between winning and losing.

But nonetheless - you cannot deny this team's skill when it's on. Geno was unstoppable and I'm glad we responded with a 5-1 win.

I haven't liked his game for a while. In fact, the last time I thought he was "vintage Crosby" was before Malkin returned from injury, when Sid basically carried an AHL defense on his back.

Since Malkin's return, Sid does seem to be more in cruise control mode quite a bit of the time. His natural talent shows through a few times a game, but for a lot of the game he looks like he's coasting.

If he is just coasting until the Olympics, hopefully he goes into beast mode as soon as he returns. Kunitz seems to disappear when Crosby isn't playing well. Not sure what to make of that.

The not stopping/starting and crazy loops. At least I didn't see the absurd amount of east/west passing. I guess I'll wait and see what he does after the olympics. I just really cannot believe i'm watching #87 conserve energy. It just feels strange.

 

[ColePens]

I'm just curious what you thought of Kunitz's game?
I wouldn't get rid of Adams but Sill in place of Glass and any WBS'er instead of Koby is fine with me.

The line just looked out of sorts tonight. Kunitz wasn't terrible but it was a nothing game for him. He wasn't killing us, which is nice. I think it was a combination of both guys taking it easier than normal and having Koby on their line is bad.

It's weird that those two were sort of skating and looping around after a 5-1 loss. That's when I expect leadership to be full force.

 

[AjaxTelamon]

Whichever line Glass is on gets hemmed in their own zone constantly. He's the common denominator when that happens.

It'll continue to fascinate me how he and Adams continue to be looked at as bottom six fixtures. It's embarrassing how shortsighted the FO is as well as the coaching staff.

It's even worse how the media doesn't say anything about it either, including that lard ass Madden who continues to think he knows everything about everything.

The most frustrating part about all if it is that they actually have the tools already in place to fix the bottom six, making only a single or at most, 2 trades necessary to fix the team instead of several.

The crazy part is, even if Shero goes out and gets some real bottom sixers, the guys they should ideally replacing aren't going to go anywhere.

Glass just skates into his own end, and sets up camp near a dot, and stands there. It's embarrassing, really.

As to Sutter, I can't agree with much Sutter hate. His PK'ing has been off the charts efficient. His advanced stats on the PK really are obscene:

Sutter:
Opp Shooting% 4.3
GA20: .823
HARD (fuzzy Hockeyanalysis.com composite of D play, but still useful): 70.1

for comparison, our PK aces:

Adams:
Opp Shooting% 6.25
GA20: 1.074
HARD: 61.8

Glass:
Opp Shooting% 6.82
GA20: 1.250
HARD: 55.9

Dupuis:

Opp Shooting% 7.46
GA20: 1.349
HARD: 51.5

We are the #1 PK in the league, and he's our best PK'r by far, and is always up against #1 PP's (not like Glass, who typically comes in late in PP's only, and still stinks it up).

As to scoring, I'm not going to judge his offense with Glass on his wing. He has scored when he's had Conner, Gibbons, JJ, and Dupuis for very brief stretches. If he gets JJ full time, he will score at a 20 + 25 pace, which is perfectly reasonable secondary scoring. He's on pace for 13+15 now with minimal PPT, which is a miracle considering his linemates.

 

[Smacker]

+ Geno/Jussi
+ Letang
+ Orpik
+ Pyatt
+ Sid
+ MAF!





Great win!

 

[Michael8771*]

Do you have any specific players in mind or trades that could happen?

Obviously lots of players do similar things or do things better, but Pittsburgh doesn't have them. The question to me would be: how easy is it to get them?

I think if you make a trade and include Sutter you MUST get a 3c back. I'm not disputing that. But to me, any potential trade partner can accommodate us in that regard. Be it COL, EDM, WIN ect.

I'd love to know what a package of Letang and Sutter could bring back. Maybe ROR, Mcginn and Talbot? Or maybe Eberle and Gordon?

 

[vikingGoalie]

When errey commented "therrien wasn't happy after two periods his team was soff" that gets a plus

 

[Captain Hook]

Pyatt's been a surprisingly decent addition so far.

 

[drpepper]

I think if you make a trade and include Sutter you MUST get a 3c back. I'm not disputing that. But to me, any potential trade partner can accommodate us in that regard. Be it COL, EDM, WIN ect.

I'd love to know what a package of Letang and Sutter could bring back. Maybe ROR, Mcginn and Talbot? Or maybe Eberle and Gordon?

Not to over take the post-game thread with trade talk, but judging by the news and rumours I think you may be over-estimating what the Pens could get and the willingness of GMs to do trades especially on teams headed to the playoffs. The Oilers might be more doable, but I didn't think Gordon had any more offensive upside than Sutter and hasn't he been injury-prone?

I am not sure there are many trading partners willing to give up a player better than Sutter without moving someone like Letang, multiple pieces that the Pens don't have, prospects and/or picks, or some combination thereof.

 

[jmelm]

Awesome game on so many levels, particularly Fleury and the fight that could have been, and Malkin just showing from the first shift that he wanted to take this game over.

But I have to single out Kris Letang and give him a + tonight to try to bring some equilibrium to the (somewhat deserved, and somewhat undeserved and short-sighted) sh**storm of criticism he has taken on these boards the last few weeks. Tonight, he played a very solid game all around, with few if any mistakes.

We'll see if this continues, but it might just be that he and Scuderi are finally each getting some games underneath them, and developing some comfort together as a pair.

 

[Mr Jiggyfly]

- Adams/Glass: I swear on my life I'm not just speaking to HFers and saying this for your good. Jaded/Jiggy (can't remember which one) is 100% right about Adams. Live... he is the slowest player in the NHL. He does nothing out there. However, he actually means more than Glass. Tanner Glass is ****ing PATHETIC. I have never seen a guy more pathetic. He seriously does nothing out there. These two guys need let go/cut/whatever. They are so ****ing bad.

I made a few comments about Quicksand being one of the slowest players I've ever seen live. I also remember saying after a few games last season Glass was garbage and nothing has changed my mind since then.

I hate that people don't respect the game enough and make comments like "why are people worried about fourth liners? Robble robble robble!"

Fourth liners matter in the playoffs. I've talked about it numerous times. You can't win with three lines and Quicksand and Glass will never be even a solid fourth line. They are a liability and DB is creating that liability. That is what bothers me so damn much.

The fact Sill is sitting over these two is so silly that it's not even worth talking about. Bylsma gonna Bylsma.

 

[Sidney the Kidney]

I'm likely way out in left field with this, but does it strike anyone else that Letang's better on the PP when the play develops on the lefts side? He seems to make a lot more mistakes when Crosby/Malkin are keeping the play on the right half boards and setting up the play from there.

Maybe he's blind in his right eye.

 

[87CROSBYBEST87]

:handclap

thanks for the video - like the sportsmanship n respect after the tilt

looks as though budaj was lucky the refs stepped in


Fleury: defined by the proper levels of pugnacity + testosterone + truculence + belligerence.

 

[Tender Rip]

Thought the scoreline flattered us somewhat, but still full value for the win driven by an imperial Malkin.

Bottom 6 still suffered for long stretches in our zone, but Montreal didn't really have it to make us pay - although they had enough good chances before the game got away from them.

Can only echo the frustration with the permanence of Gladams, considering how very little they do for us outside of Adams overrated but still certainly competent PK efforts.

Orpik was less of a debacle in this one, but both he and Scuds again found ways to show how limited they are in getting the puck out of our zone with a purpose other than blindly clearing.
Letang was good except for the PP, where it is just annoying that he has as much of a role to bring it in as he does, because he doesn't have the mind for it. Maatta was mostly very good, but got walked a few times. Niskanen only once that I can remember, and otherwise he had another very good outing.

Pyatt had another accomplished game offering qualities we are otherwise short on. His best spot (for the team) would be with Geno and Neal, because Jokinen would function just as well with Sid and Kunitz (don't tell me a winger on Sid's line who can find soft spots and finish off plays isn't making sense), and I think Pyatt's lack of food speed is a bigger impediment for success with Sid than it is with Malkin. With Bennett back, at the very worst Pyatt is a much better player than guys like Glass and Adams, and he should help make the bottom 6 harder to play also.

How Megna got 7.32 I will never know. Two - 2! - shifts in the second period, and four in the third when up 5-1. Really?

 

[Candyman]

I only caught the 3rd period so my view is limited, but pluses to most players:
Malkin, Sid, Megna, Jokinen, Neal, Scuderi, Fleury, Orpik, Maata namely

I'm still giving a minus to Sutter, I hated his game tonight. Can the guy skate at all? I see him on his knees more often than his feet game after game, it was funny at first but now it's just annoying and combined with the fact that he is not producing much offensively and slightly better than average defensively I wouldn't mind not re-signing him and looking for someone else this summer.

 

[Ragamuffin Gunner]

Good thing DB learned from last game and kept Meg under 8 min of ice time!

 

[mpp9]

Thought the scoreline flattered us somewhat, but still full value for the win driven by an imperial Malkin.

Bottom 6 still suffered for long stretches in our zone, but Montreal didn't really have it to make us pay - although they had enough good chances before the game got away from them.

Can only echo the frustration with the permanence of Gladams, considering how very little they do for us outside of Adams overrated but still certainly competent PK efforts.

Orpik was less of a debacle in this one, but both he and Scuds again found ways to show how limited they are in getting the puck out of our zone with a purpose other than blindly clearing.
Letang was good except for the PP, where it is just annoying that he has as much of a role to bring it in as he does, because he doesn't have the mind for it. Maatta was mostly very good, but got walked a few times. Niskanen only once that I can remember, and otherwise he had another very good outing.

Pyatt had another accomplished game offering qualities we are otherwise short on. His best spot (for the team) would be with Geno and Neal, because Jokinen would function just as well with Sid and Kunitz (don't tell me a winger on Sid's line who can find soft spots and finish off plays isn't making sense), and I think Pyatt's lack of food speed is a bigger impediment for success with Sid than it is with Malkin. With Bennett back, at the very worst Pyatt is a much better player than guys like Glass and Adams, and he should help make the bottom 6 harder to play also.

How Megna got 7.32 I will never know. Two - 2! - shifts in the second period, and four in the third when up 5-1. Really?

They don't trust Megna to close out games.

They want guys with Sid who can skate. Jokinen can't.

Pyatt is fine in a bottom six role, getting doubleshifted with Geno/Neal and spot duty on the PP.

I can't really fault DB too much for how he's handling this roster outside of Glass and Adams. But I'm convincined one of them will play himself off the lineup in the playoffs, just like last year. So I'll just assume that's how it'll go down again. And when they do falter, we have plenty of options to plug in there.

 

[WayneSid9987]

Pyatt's been a surprisingly decent addition so far.

Indeed.
Theres been a gradual progression since he landed here. I hope he keeps it up.

 

[WayneSid9987]

Also, Sid and Kunitz's biggest problem is maintaining possession in the O-zone. The amount of times opponents get possession of the puck and easily work it out of the zone against them is worrisome. IMO both Megna or Pyatt are better options than JJ.

Megna is atleast fast enough to get in and cause chaos/turnovers and Pyatt, if he gets a puck isn't easy to check off of it. JJ has neither of those assets in his game.

Right now those are the 2 best options, other than Neal of course.