Post-Game Talk: the caps had game 7 in the bag. I blame holtby

[WcRoenick97]

I will say I was perplexed on how we went from playoff road warriors last season to looking like the younger team on the road this playoffs. So weird. That Canes crowd was wild but nothing they hadn’t seen before. I really think the Caps were hit in the mouth by the relentlessness and speed of the Canes and took them for granted. They learned a good lesson.

 

[CapitalsCupReality]

I will say I was perplexed on how we went from playoff road warriors last season to looking like the younger team on the road this playoffs. So weird. That Canes crowd was wild but nothing they hadn’t seen before. I really think the Caps were hit in the mouth by the relentlessness and speed of the Canes and took them for granted. They learned a good lesson.

The boys, or at least some of them didn’t want it as bad as last year.

 

[CapitalsCupReality]

I still can’t believe we blew TWO 2 goal leads that game, but after that shorty goal it felt like it was inevitable that we would lose. If we had just got it to 3-0 in that first period it’s lights out and we move on. It just sucks because every other series went our way and I legit think we make the Finals again even with the injuries we had sustained. But...we will be there next year. Just get this team rested up. No team in the East really scares me. The Canes will definitely be a pain in the ass going forward but they could face that sophomore slump and not even make the playoffs next year. You never know.

Should have been one of the easiest paths to repeat ever.

 

[member 303789]

Let me start this off by saying I have always been a huge Holtby fan. Have his jersey, been my favourite goalie since the 2012 Boston series.

Thing is, over the past couple seasons, sometimes we get the "LOL"tby version.

When he is on his game, he can be amazing. However sometimes he seems to lose mental control and appears to look nervous out there. I feel like this was the case in game 7 against Carolina this year.

That tying goal from J. Staal can absolutely not go in. That angle is ridiculous. Had so much net to shoot at. All he needs to do is stop that. I am sure he knows it himself too, but I feel like 99% of goalies will stop that. It was just horrendous.

Anyways, him being good or bad in that game feels like the difference to us going on another run this year. Losing out in round 1 is an easier pill to swallow after winning the cup, but thinking if we had never won the cup - that would be totally unacceptable under any conditions for any team and their tendy. For a golaie to let that softie in. (There are some others too, such as the spin around goal he looked for goalie interference for)

I haven't been on this board since the game 7 or watched much playoffs after it, just taking a break from so much we had watched over the years. So maybe this has been mentioned. I wanted to post a thread and see if other people feel the same way, and what their thoughts are going forward with Holtby as our #1.

I have thought a lot about this actually. I remember during the previous championship run he had some significant rest prior to the playoffs because Grubauer was playing better and it was his net for a while. Fate intervened and Holtby stepped back in and the rest is history. I think the conventional wisdom has been that he performs his best with little to no down time and I am not sure that is the case. Your most significant point is very well taken. Injuries aside, had we not been defending champs our round 1 exit would have be viewed so very differently.
I predict a bounce back and a significant run at another cup next season. In any event, he is under the microscope a bit. Let's see how he responds next season.

 

[txpd]

I have thought a lot about this actually. I remember during the previous championship run he had some significant rest prior to the playoffs because Grubauer was playing better and it was his net for a while. Fate intervened and Holtby stepped back in and the rest is history. I think the conventional wisdom has been that he performs his best with little to no down time and I am not sure that is the case. Your most significant point is very well taken. Injuries aside, had we not been defending champs our round 1 exit would have be viewed so very differently.
I predict a bounce back and a significant run at another cup next season. In any event, he is under the microscope a bit. Let's see how he responds next season.

He has always played his best when playing every other day. Give him 4 days to a week off and he stinks up the show his first game back. He has a long track record of that. His playoff play last year highlights just that.

That doesn't mean that he should be playing 65-70 starts per season. He played in 59 games last season including relief appearances. He was not overworked

 

[Hivemind]

He has always played his best when playing every other day. Give him 4 days to a week off and he stinks up the show his first game back. He has a long track record of that. His playoff play last year highlights just that.

Oh.... is that why he has a better sv% (.920) and GAA (2.66) on 3+ days rest than he does on 1 days rest (.910sv%, 2.77GAA) this past season?
Braden Holtby

 

[txpd]

Oh.... is that why he has a better sv% (.920) and GAA (2.66) on 3+ days rest than he does on 1 days rest (.910sv%, 2.77GAA) this past season?
Braden Holtby

I wont argue with you. If you think he played too much and or shouldn't have played all the playoff games. Ok. That he plays his best in an every other game routine, its been the case for years and I am not alone in this thinking. But maybe you know better.

 

[Devil Dancer]

I wont argue with you. If you think he played too much and or shouldn't have played all the playoff games. Ok. That he plays his best in an every other game routine, its been the case for years and I am not alone in this thinking. But maybe you know better.

That was the case for a while, but it seems to have changed the last two seasons.

 

[txpd]

That was the case for a while, but it seems to have changed the last two seasons.

When did he play well season before last? I don't recall that happening until the playoffs. The Caps went 6 and 7 games in each series and he got little rest thru the run.

 

[HTFN]

I'm just riffing but I've been in a funk for a while, so I went back and watched Cup highlights to get an easy good vibe, and while it's easy to highlight DSP for his timely contributions I'd swear that Cup run lives and dies with Burakovsky finding his confidence. Every single player made the right play so many times over, but when you get down to some of the more crucial moments it seems like it's Burakovsky or DSP with a hand in things.

edit: and actually, Lars Eller was maybe more instrumental than all of them. 3 centers wins you a Cup, I think.