Post-Game Talk: Regular Season Game #1: Pens @ Caps | 4/26/18 | 7:00pm EST

[AlexBrovechkin8]

Welp, that sucked.

 

[Langway]

Chiasson is so confusing to me.

He gets some damn good chances, he gets in good positions, he's so close, but he's not skilled enough to consistently put the puck in the net.

Maybe players that bounce around and are on their third or fourth team by 27 aren't the answer. Certainly not when their own ability to develop players further remains a big question mark. Wilson has come along and Stephenson is at least getting an opportunity (even if he's not altogether ready for each type of usage). But where's Vrana? If they're just going to play him around six minutes then at least try Gersich so that maybe there's more along the lines of whatever they're looking for. The exact thing they're looking for seems pretty nebulous, though, outside of Trusting the Process and Managing the Game while also playing like their hair is on fire.

 

[ovikovy817]

Agreed, another performance like G1 and we got to go to Grubi

What?? if not Holtby, Pens scores 5-6 easily

 

[Skrudland2Lomakin]

What?? if not Holtby, Pens scores 5-6 easily

Slide that crystal ball over here...


If we're down 0-2 going into game 3, why would we not make adjustments?

 

[ovikovy817]

Slide that crystal ball over here...


If we're down 0-2 going into game 3, why would we not make adjustments?

What if we lose 1-0 on a deflection with 50 SOG for Pens, you still make the "adjustment"?

 

[Skrudland2Lomakin]

Have you spent much time in Pittsburgh, though? It's really not a bad place.

Ovie looked dialed in. Tough loss.

I lived in the Ohio valley area for almost 5 years, it's a fine place.... that's it, fine. It's not what I'd call nice or underrated by any stretch of the imagination, but it's fine. When you get out towards the middle of the country you begin recognize cities as being literally just a higher density of people and that's about it, if you lived in a surrounding area you could see why the city is enticing, if you're from literally any other place you don't really understand the allure, that's Pitt. I get why locals to the area like the city, it has the general perks of a city, but like Cincinnati, Columbus, or any other city in that general area, it's got nothing that really makes it an enticing or remarkable place to people who live near bigger cities. Places like NYC, Phila, Boston, DC, etc. have some level of charm and entertainment that draw people in, places like Pittsburgh are more functional in nature.

Again if you have to live there it's not a bad place, it's just not going to be a destination for anyone who has other options.

 

[Skrudland2Lomakin]

What if we lose 1-0 on a deflection with 50 SOG for Pens, you still make the "adjustment"?

We lost 4-3 in OT in game 1 of CBus and no one rolled out that argument then.

Also what's the point of this hypothetical? You want me to dig my heels in? The answer is it depends. I'm not going to draw a hardline, if we go down 0-2 it makes sense to at least explore our options. Damn this team Holtby vs. team Grubi stuff is apparently divisive.

 

[Skrudland2Lomakin]

Chiasson is so confusing to me.

He gets some damn good chances, he gets in good positions, he's so close, but he's not skilled enough to consistently put the puck in the net.

Like a Jason Chimera with even less reason to be in the lineup.

 

[Capsman]

Tremendous? Most players did last night. The ice must have been middling or worse, even for Capital One

While shot totals were moderate, both teams had many high scoring area chances. Holtby made some superb saves, as did MM. Holtby is not the reason the Caps lost game 1.

OV game after game has killer turnovers due to pucks that aren't laying flat. Just seems to struggle more than most in that area.

 

[Bladerunner]

OV game after game has killer turnovers due to pucks that aren't laying flat. Just seems to struggle more than most in that area.

Well last night it was happening to many. It's not so much of a disagreement w/you but perhaps b/c of who it is, people notice it more.

At this stage of his career he has his weaknesses. Crosby isn't good/great at everything, he has a stronger supporting cast. Don't understand how Pitt can pay 87, 71, Kessel, Letang... and also come up with players like the Guentzel's?

 

[hb12xchamps]

Way too much negativity in here.

Teams that win a Stanley Cup face adversity. The Caps put themselves in a hole in round one and now they did the same thing in round two. They were the better team for most of the game and there's a lot of positive takeaways. Now it's time for Ovechkin to lead this team to a 2nd round victory after doing so in the first round.

 

[OV Rocks]

Playing against the Penguins in the playoffs is like playing the Patriots. Teams that beat the Patriots convert when they are in the Red Zone and score touchdowns not kick field goals. The same has to be true when playing the Penguins. You have to capitalize on every single opportunity and win game 4-1, 5-2, 6-3. The Caps had 5-7 grade A scoring chances that were not finished.

Say what you want about systems and special teams you have to convert on every single opportunity the Penguins give you to score, if not you see what happened last night.


Also I am sick and tired of "well the Caps were the better team that night." I am done with that phrase, they have been the better team in 75% of the games against the playoffs and lost. It means nothing to me anymore how well they played if they didn't win

 

[notDkristich]

The game was oozing of entertainment value. The score easily could have been 10-9 for either team.

However, Caps were too tense in the 1st period. Pitt would have melted away if we scored on those 2-3 wide open nets. *face palm*

Enjoy the ride, and take it easy on your liver.

 

[twabby]

But it's not like Backstrom was tasked with a supreme shutdown role in this one. Trotz went power vs. power and left Backstrom for mostly Kessel's line and then some against their other two lower lines. In that situation, Backstrom absolutely needs to produce. He doesn't necessarily need to score himself but he needs to produce offensively and he didn't. They're a bit limited for the time being with Burakovsky not available but Stephenson in that sort of usage is less understandable.

Agreed, Backstrom's most common forward opponents last night in order were Sheahan (most), Kessel, Simon, Rust, and Sheary. His least common forward opponents in order were Crosby (least), Hornqvist, Guentzel. His line needed to be able generate far more chances than they did last night given the competition they faced. If it was just a matter of some bounces not going their way that'd be one thing but they simply didn't look dangerous. Even the third line was able to generate some grade A chances (that they flubbed).

 

[Lindemann]

I would be more positive if Malkin and Haglein played yesterday

But we lost without their 2 top forwards

That’s the biggest concern for me, I’m sorry, there is just no way to escape that fact

 

[marcel snapshot]

Agree that we need to temper the negativity. We would all prefer a throat-stomp after going up by 2, but that’s not how we roll. And it probably won’t be until we achieve the cathartic relief and overall team confidence that would accompany getting out of round 2.

My straw of hope was that I didn’t see a lot of fear or self-pity after going down 3-2. They put themselves in a position to come tie it up and if Conno’a shot is 6 inches higher we go to OT

 

[Capsman]

Agree that we need to temper the negativity. We would all prefer a throat-stomp after going up by 2, but that’s not how we roll. And it probably won’t be until we achieve the cathartic relief and overall team confidence that would accompany getting out of round 2.

My straw of hope was that I didn’t see a lot of fear or self-pity after going down 3-2. They put themselves in a position to come tie it up and if Conno’a shot is 6 inches higher we go to OT

I would agree with you there, as it was very different from, say, the 3rd period of game 7 last year. However, there was also game 6 two years ago when they came back from 3-0 down only to get clobbered in OT.

 

[Langway]

They were the better team for most of the game and there's a lot of positive takeaways. Now it's time for Ovechkin to lead this team to a 2nd round victory after doing so in the first round.

This better team stuff is said after every loss since being Halaked, though, no? It sure seems like it. They do work hard for most of the game but they haven't shown the ability to make plays when the pressure is on and they absolutely need a goal. It's on all of them, not just Ovechkin. Hell, it would be nice if the second line had a pulse. That looks like a bigger issue. Two shots for Nicklas and two shots for TJ only and TJ's were with the goalie pulled 6-on-5. That won't cut it. They needed those two players solidly in the mix trying to pad the lead when they were cruising along the first 40 minutes but they were hardly getting anything done. Hard to win that way when their depth is pretty unremarkable.

Pittsburgh remains a challenge on another level and they've largely still not understood that reality in a way that leads to them improving collectively. It's like they don't learn from history. They just seek to forget it and...play right into it. It may be a long series but I didn't really see anything new aside from Kuznetsov being very comfortable. We'll see whether that remains the case when Malkin plays.

 

[ovikovy817]

I would be more positive if Malkin and Haglein played yesterday

But we lost without their 2 top forwards

That’s the biggest concern for me, I’m sorry, there is just no way to escape that fact

Hagelin? top forward? the guy that pens fans wanted to trade during the whole season?

 

[Calicaps]

I would be more positive if Malkin and Haglein played yesterday

But we lost without their 2 top forwards

That’s the biggest concern for me, I’m sorry, there is just no way to escape that fact

Meh. The Caps biggest hurdle is always themselves. They had this one and coughed it up. Just like they did against the hapless Jackets.

 

[exHornet]

Hagelin? top forward? the guy that pens fans wanted to trade during the whole season?

Dead wrong about that. Hagelin was excellent in the second half of the season, when he was playing. He is a very significant player. Nobody wanted him gone.

In the off-season, his name always come up in cap discussions because of his cap number, but that's not an issue right now, obviously. This guy is very important for the Pens.

 

[Marcobruin]

Are you talking about the Crosby goal?

Hornqvist.even if it was a deflection. BH.didn't cover well.
Too bad for wash though goal from kuz and especially Ovie's were as beaute

 

[Fordy]

Hagelin? top forward? the guy that pens fans wanted to trade during the whole season?

that was last season when he had an lbi he never recovered from until this year. he’s been almost a ppg in the second half of this season

 

[Ms Maggie]

I lived in the Ohio valley area for almost 5 years, it's a fine place.... that's it, fine. It's not what I'd call nice or underrated by any stretch of the imagination, but it's fine. When you get out towards the middle of the country you begin recognize cities as being literally just a higher density of people and that's about it, if you lived in a surrounding area you could see why the city is enticing, if you're from literally any other place you don't really understand the allure, that's Pitt. I get why locals to the area like the city, it has the general perks of a city, but like Cincinnati, Columbus, or any other city in that general area, it's got nothing that really makes it an enticing or remarkable place to people who live near bigger cities. Places like NYC, Phila, Boston, DC, etc. have some level of charm and entertainment that draw people in, places like Pittsburgh are more functional in nature.

Again if you have to live there it's not a bad place, it's just not going to be a destination for anyone who has other options.

Why Google, Uber, and Facebook Are Flocking to This Quiet Rust Belt City

 

[Capsman]

Dead wrong about that. Hagelin was excellent in the second half of the season, when he was playing. He is a very significant player. Nobody wanted him gone.

In the off-season, his name always come up in cap discussions because of his cap number, but that's not an issue right now, obviously. This guy is very important for the Pens.

You coming here to make sure everyone knows you won without an important player? Point taken. You will win the series again. Congratulations, I hope that it makes your day (and maybe your life) that the NHL loves your city (owner?) and has made sure, through draft rigging and officiating, that you win as many Stanley Cups as possible. May you have many more 7 players on the ice that go unnoticed. May interference continue to be an infraction all teams but yours commits. May your team high stick as often as possible while your opponent is so lucky not to be called for embellishment.