ncm7772
Registered User
If it came down to it, does our HF Consensus lean towards DeSmith or Jarry?
Right now, I vote DeSmith. Definitely Jarry in the long run. Unfortunately, I was a little disappointed with him (Jarry) this year. Definitely had some good games, just expected a little more.
Just wanted to say:
- Sullivan. Sullivan. Sullivan. His interview with Pierre McGuire in the 2nd period is the microcosm difference of 2012 and 2018. Pierre tried playing up the narrative that the Penguins needed to be more physical to get back into the game, and Sullivan shot that down real quick. Lo and behold. Sullivan was a magician in this game in particular. He kept getting the Crosby line out there against tired legs in the 2nd/3rd periods. I'm not an x's and o's guy, but just his philosophy and demeanor have resonated with the team. The Flyers stopped being physical once that third goal was plotted. They panicked. They chased us from then on. That's the retaliation I wanted.
- Piggy-backing on that idea: Thank you Giroux. Your hit on Hagelins fired up the Penguins' bench. Up until that point, the Penguins looked flat sans a 3-minute stretch in the first, and just didn't look like their night. It was definitely a legal hit. But I think a hit can be clean AND dumb at the same time. Was literally unnecessary to line him up. Hopefully Hags is okay, but that was the spark that started it all. Kessel took a very dumb penalty in the process, but it's just one of those entities that hindsight ends up setting the narrative. Whatever. Coincidence or not, it was his best game of the series.
- Sheahan and Sheary. WONDERFUL series by both guys. Sheary's box score won't look pretty but he was noticeable all series long. He and Brassard have seemed to create some chemistry in-tight and around the crease, it'll pay dividends at some point. Overall, I just loved Sheary's compete level and he looked dangerous every game essentially. And well, Sheahan was Mr. Everything - especially in G6. But even in G5, he generated the momentum that led to our momentum surge in the 2nd period. His knack of getting the best out of Kessel ought to be weighed heavily next series. HAS to be. Dumoulin is finally getting his due, EVEN after being the best Pens defenseman all spring last season (and the 2nd best in 2016). So I thought I'd give a shoutout to these two guys as well.
- And just because I'm on the topic: Dumoulin ++++++. His one-on-one work was just on insanity tier levels this series. He's always been an artist of gap control, that G4 was just his latest master-piece. It reminded me of him swallowing Ovechkin time and time again last year on 1v1 battles. He might be assigned the same task here soon enough.
- Oh, I guess that Jake guy did something incredible today, too. I just wanted to point out how his pressure on the puck started the whole sequence on the 5th goal. All facets of his game are just A1 right now. Two-way play. Physicality. Hockey sense. Finishing. Offensive instincts. All of it.
- I'm being way too complimentary. Oh well. Just enjoying the ride. The up's and down's of the playoffs will test the insanity of all us maniacs who post on a hockey message board (even those who do so in rare fashion like me), but I'm just going to just keep telling myself to enjoy it all. Today was an eye opener that we may never have this much talent on one team ever again, and I'm talking well beyond 87/71. Next round is just another opportunity to be in awe of the fortunate circumstance of being a Pittsburgh Penguins fan.
Great post. Fantastic points on Sullivan, Sheahan and Dumolin. Love how Sullivan runs this team. Sheahan and Dumo both had outstanding series'.
+Undefeated in Road Games. I don't know if anyone has mentioned this but it was a major concern during the regular season. The Pens were among the best teams in the league at home and tended to be less than stellar on the road. We had one good home game in this series but otherwise we won this series by taking 3 games on the road.
Never predicted that. It's great to see. Kind of crazy considering how butt this team was on the road this year.