Potential Season Ending Epic Double-Assed GDT: On The Brink| Blues @ Avs| 7pm, TNT| Lazy Meme/Gif Party

[simon IC]

We had Perunovich as the 7th D just for the powerplay lol

As it should have been. Perunovich is simply not good enough defensively to be used 5 on 5. Not in the playoffs, anyway. At this point, he is still a liability.

 

[TheDizee]

We had Perunovich as the 7th D just for the powerplay lol

ya but makes no sense to play him since we only get meaningful PPs when refalanche have a 2+ goal lead and hes a liability defensively.

krug skated with team today so maybe hes close.

 

[Zachary Hines]

Can someone please explain the Mikkola penalty? It was a follow through on the puck and the stick caught Kadri up high which is legal. The the actual call was roughing. That was NOT roughing or an intentional high stick. My guess its because it was Kadri and now the league is trying to protect him cause he is alll of a sudden the victim in all of this!

 

[Xerloris]

Can someone please explain the Mikkola penalty? It was a follow through on the puck and the stick caught Kadri up high which is legal. The the actual call was roughing. That was NOT roughing or an intentional high stick. My guess its because it was Kadri and now the league is trying to protect him cause he is alll of a sudden the victim in all of this!

Because they can't call it a high stick because it was a follow through but poor baby victim card Kadri got hurt so they have to protect him.

 

[TheDizee]

Can someone please explain the Mikkola penalty? It was a follow through on the puck and the stick caught Kadri up high which is legal. The the actual call was roughing. That was NOT roughing or an intentional high stick. My guess its because it was Kadri and now the league is trying to protect him cause he is alll of a sudden the victim in all of this!

sure

The Chokealanche are this era's darling. Like the Wings, Hawks and Sharks of years past, the league favors them with calls and oftentime makes up BULLSHIT to reward them and help get momentum on their side.

There are 2 laws regarding this choking team known as the Refalanche.

First one up is the "Oxygen Law". The refs give their darling lover team CPR to help get them going and hopefully break the game open. This includes phantoms PPs such as "low sticks", soft baby hooks on MacChoken when the game is a one goal game or the call on Mikkola like you mentioned. They also allow them to engage in massive interference/picks and get away with it. Ex: would be the pick on Barbashev during last playoffs.

Which brings up to the second law: the Refalanche "Law of 2".

Under no circumstances will the Blues EVER get a meaningful powerplay at a key spot late in a game unless:

A) The score has the Chokealanche up by 2+ goals
B) It is such a OBVIOUS or AUTOMATIC call that they can't hide it. This includes such calls as Delay of game or the goalie clearly playing the puck in the no go zone.

Hope that explains things! I have done lots of research and analysis on the 2 laws above.

The Chokealanche are indeed a pathetic franchise with no hope of ever winning a cup with that choking core and goaltender but the officials certainly are trying their best to help them.

 

[Stealth JD]

Way to shock the world, Blues. Nice comeback.
It only gets more difficult from here. Do it again!

 

[execwrite1]

Wow - I didn't watch or tape the game, so obviously I won't be seeing Game 6 also.

Unbelievable comeback by the boys. One of the great victories ever - or just a footnote.

Let's Go Blues!

 

[The Note]

Well at least they made this an easier decision. Always kinda figured tonight was gonna be brutal. Godspeed to those of you who stick around, I’ll likely be seein ya around UFA.

This is what I get for going to bed. I’ll see you all tomorrow night it seems.

 

[execwrite1]

From Lou -

Berube moved rookie Alexei Toropchenko up from the fourth line to a line with Brayden Schenn and Jordan Kyrou, because it was Toropchenko who kept pushing, fighting and playing hard when the Blues' chips looked like they were down. He would factor in the tying goal scored by Justin Faulk, then credited to Jordan Kyrou with 4:46 remaining to tie the game 3-3.
"He’s such a good skater and he plays so direct," Berube said of Toropchenko. "Whatever line he goes to, they have a good shift, that’s what it seems like to me. I just made that switch (with 5:25 remaining in the game) and they ended up getting a goal. I thought he had a heck of a game."

 

[execwrite1]

 

[Zezel’s Pretzels]

This is what I get for going to bed. I’ll see you all tomorrow night it seems.

You are not alone here. Amazing news to wake up to. LGB!

 

[Xerloris]

This is what I get for going to bed. I’ll see you all tomorrow night it seems.

 

[Reality Czech]

From Lou -

Berube moved rookie Alexei Toropchenko up from the fourth line to a line with Brayden Schenn and Jordan Kyrou, because it was Toropchenko who kept pushing, fighting and playing hard when the Blues' chips looked like they were down. He would factor in the tying goal scored by Justin Faulk, then credited to Jordan Kyrou with 4:46 remaining to tie the game 3-3.
"He’s such a good skater and he plays so direct," Berube said of Toropchenko. "Whatever line he goes to, they have a good shift, that’s what it seems like to me. I just made that switch (with 5:25 remaining in the game) and they ended up getting a goal. I thought he had a heck of a game."

That was a great move from Chief. Barbashev has looked like a 4th liner so might as well put him there.

 

[TheDizee]

 

[Klank Loves You]

Torpedo has some impressive tools. Showing that he can be effective in the playoffs this early into his career is beyond exciting. Power forwards are notorious for taking a while to develop. Learn to play smart D, and add just a dash of finishing ability, and that's a top 6 forward right there boys.

 

[execwrite1]

Torpedo has some impressive tools. Showing that he can be effective in the playoffs this early into his career is beyond exciting. Power forwards are notorious for taking a while to develop. Learn to play smart D, and add just a dash of finishing ability, and that's a top 6 forward right there boys.

Great work by the scouting department. 113th pick, 4th round.

 

[Allens Five Hole]

Torpedo has some impressive tools. Showing that he can be effective in the playoffs this early into his career is beyond exciting. Power forwards are notorious for taking a while to develop. Learn to play smart D, and add just a dash of finishing ability, and that's a top 6 forward right there boys.

As it stands right now, he reminds me a lot of Sunny. Very reliable 4th liner who can move up the lineup in a pinch. Not sure his shot will ever be good enough to consistently beat NHL goalies but he's already made his mark on this coaching staff.

 

[execwrite1]

From JR -

“It’s just character and leadership,” Blues coach Craig Berube said. “We’ve got a lot of character in that room, we all know that. This team has come from behind quite a bit this year in games, so they don’t give up. You’ve just got to keep playing and keep battling, and they did that. That’s all on them.”

 

[Oberyn]

What a comeback by the Blues. They could have rolled over after the 3rd Avs goal but they still hung in and fought back. Great to see Thomas get on the board and hopefully we can see him back to his normal self again.

I agree that Toropchenko had a stellar game last night. His straight line speed has been a pleasure to watch and he's not afraid to get to the dirty areas. He's also finally utilizing his size effectively, as evidenced on the Tarasenko goal when he outmuscled Nichuskin.

Who would have thought that Bozak would score the OT winner. Kuemper is showing that he can be just as leaky as Husso.

Winning the next two will be a tough task but the Blues are a team that can really elevate their game when pushed against the wall.

 

[TheOrganist]

Barbashev shouldn't be playing more than 7 minutes right now.

 

[The Note]

It's interesting how quickly narratives change. After game 4, the Blues were (completely fairly) being killed over their lack of composure, not being able to handle the moment, etc. Then they bounce back in a do-or-die situation, with MacK in full-blown psycho mode, on the road to win in dramatic fashion. This feels like a huge "reset" that the series - at least from a Blues perspective - needed. Of course it is all for naught if they go out there and lay an egg tomorrow night, but I would bet against that at this point. Hopefully this is the levee starting to break on Thomas/Vova/Buch, because if they can get going along with ROR and Perron staying in form, this could be a very interesting series yet. Also, throw everything on net. Kuemper has not looked super sharp at many points this series, IMO. And I was someone who thought the people talking about him being a weakness before the series were missing the mark.

 

[MissouriMook]

Torpedo has some impressive tools. Showing that he can be effective in the playoffs this early into his career is beyond exciting. Power forwards are notorious for taking a while to develop. Learn to play smart D, and add just a dash of finishing ability, and that's a top 6 forward right there boys.

He should spend the entire offseason working on his shot and the entire training camp learning to be the best defender he can be. He already has some great tools and seems to have the toolbox to know how to use them, he just needs to add more tools to climb the ladder from 14th forward to everyday 3rd liner.

 

[MissouriMook]

It's interesting how quickly narratives change. After game 4, the Blues were (completely fairly) being killed over their lack of composure, not being able to handle the moment, etc. Then they bounce back in a do-or-die situation, with MacK in full-blown psycho mode, on the road to win in dramatic fashion. This feels like a huge "reset" that the series - at least from a Blues perspective - needed. Of course it is all for naught if they go out there and lay an egg tomorrow night, but I would bet against that at this point. Hopefully this is the levee starting to break on Thomas/Vova/Buch, because if they can get going along with ROR and Perron staying in form, this could be a very interesting series yet. Also, throw everything on net. Kuemper has not looked super sharp at many points this series, IMO. And I was someone who thought the people talking about him being a weakness before the series were missing the mark.

I agree with most of this, but I don't understand how Buch keeps getting lumped in with guys that "need to get it going". He has 11 points in 11 games in the playoffs including 7 points in 5 games in this series. Sure we'd like to see a few more goals in that total, but he is one of only three players on the team at a point per game in the playoffs and the only one to do so in this series. He is definitely underappreciated in these playoffs.

 

[Reality Czech]

I agree with most of this, but I don't understand how Buch keeps getting lumped in with guys that "need to get it going". He has 11 points in 11 games in the playoffs including 7 points in 5 games in this series. Sure we'd like to see a few more goals in that total, but he is one of only three players on the team at a point per game in the playoffs and the only one to do so in this series. He is definitely underappreciated in these playoffs.

It took him awhile to get going but I'd say he's been doing well lately. I recall when he had 6 points or so that he hadn't been very noticeable up to that point but I think it's pretty obvious he's been our third most effective forward after the super duo of Perron/ROR. Just too bad Kadri stepped out of the way before getting flattened by Buch last night.

I gotta admit I did not see that comeback coming. The Blues looked flat and beaten for over half of that game but their character and determination came through in the end. If they can play a full 60 minutes like the third period last night then I like our chances in Game 6.

 

[ScratchCatFever]

I hope after Bozak's goal that we've figured out that Kuemper is very vulnerable mid-low glove side because of his size.