GDT: 5/24/16 - 8:00PM EDT - #2 Pittsburgh VS #2 Tampa Bay [ECF GAME 6]

[Sky04]

I gotta know what Cooper's game plan was. There was an obvious shift in strategy in the third considering the abysmal 11 shots from the first two periods were more than doubled.

Didn't play Carle and Drouin was on the ice almost every other shift.

 

[2MinutesforGiraffing]

Who has the bourbon?

My ****list tonight:

1. Vladdy
   
2. Carle (duh)
   
3. Coburn

Also, how many games has Vasy had under 3 GAA? Asking for a friend.

 

[dbieon12]

Who has the bourbon?

My ****list tonight:

1. Vladdy
   
2. Carle (duh)
   
3. Coburn

Also, how many games has Vasy had under 3 GAA? Asking for a friend.

Game 1. Last 5 have been 3 4 3 3 4.

 

[Scotty Pucks]

I know you guys are a bit nervous and I understand, but I'm here to assuage your fears: the Penguins haven't won a game 7 at home in years. You guys will be fine. They're the chokers.

 

[dbieon12]

I know you guys are a bit nervous and I understand, but I'm here to assuage your fears: the Penguins haven't won a game 7 at home in years. You guys will be fine. They're the chokers.

No. The Lightning were exceptionally lucky last year in the ECF.
- 3 former Rangers with ECF/SCF experience and a chip on their shoulder
- Marty choked hard, Rangers were bad all series
- Lightning had Bishop and Stamkos

 

[FinnLightning26]

If we lose this series, they have no one else to blame but themselves. They have two games to advance and if you can't muster up a win in neither of them, you don't deserve to win a series. It should've been over after tonight. I believe we can win but the Pens are probably the favourites.

 

[pens2016]

Pens fan here.

Great series so far. Tampa is a great team and I'm not sure who will win. Them perfect laser shots from Tampa really p*** me off. haha

 

[LightningStrikes]

Matt Carle 5:04 TOI, -1

But it's clear who got exposed:

Hedman -4
Johnson -4, 1 SOG
Kucherov -3, 1 SOG

 

[Hoek]

This right here. I would never in a million years want to see a switch in goal right now, Bishop won't be 100% and Vasy hasn't been the problem. If Bishop was good enough to start and win game 7, he would have probably already been back.

Yeah he would be at LEAST backing up Vasi if he were close to 100%.

 

[MattM92]

Had the problem again where our defensemen back off of our blueline before the Pens even hit the red line. Led to Letang's goal.

Stralman got victimized on Crosby's goal big time. I don't care who has the puck, they can not get by you like that. Grab him and drag him down if you really have to. That was the backbreaker and yet ANOTHER goal allowed in the last minute of a period.

Kramerica and I were talking on Twitter last night and he looked it up. Excluding empty netters, the Pens have scored 18 goals overall. 11 of those goals have come in the first 2 or last 2 minutes of a period. ELEVEN!! That is inexcusable. Disgusting stat. That happens far too often for it to be a coincidence. It's been every damn game this series. This team just loses focus somehow and **** themselves over.

And how about this stat, also courtesy of Kramerica, the Bolts are 12-10 at home over the last two playoffs. Simply not good enough. You can't win the Cup if you can't win at home.

To win game 7, the Bolts need to do this:

-Have focus and intensity from puck drop to buzzer. Every shift.
-Do something with their 1 PP they are going to get. It is crucial.
-Forecheck aggressively and pound their defense.
-STOP BACKING OFF THE GODDAMN BLUELINE!! Make the Penguins work for a zone entry.
-Shoot. Shoot. Shoot. Shoot. Then shoot some more. If we don't flirt with 40 shots and 70 attempts then we haven't done our job.

 

[The Jumping Shrimp]

Well uhhh, how good was Koekkoek?

Koekkoek, along with Callahan and Boyle were very good.

 

[MattM92]

Koekkoek, along with Callahan and Boyle were very good.

Yup. Those 3 along with Drouin were excellent. The rest of the team was bad to awful.

 

[2020 Cup Champions]

Why play flat for 2+ periods? I don't get it?

 

[AlphaCatalyst]

Why play flat for 2+ periods? I don't get it?

Coop going to Coop.

 

[Bumpus]

Why play flat for 2+ periods? I don't get it?

That being said ... time to rest our collective livers for tomorrow. Game 7's are both exhilarating and exhausting at the same time.

May the best team win. (Then rep the East by hoisting Lord Stanley!)

 

[Brie]

I hope that the team woke up as angry as I did this morning.

I struggle to see us win game 7, sure we've won 2 of them but we only score two goals in each which was enough since Bish shut the other team out but if we keep giving up 3+ goals tomorrow as well then we don't stand a chance. Also if we don't show up until the 3rd period then even scoring two goals won't matter like tonight (and game 3). But you know, it's either show up and work your a** off tomorrow or it's time for summer holiday, there won't be any more games in this series after that to change so we'll just see how much the team wants it.

 

[Hoek]

I really want the East to win normally to shut up those West fanboys, but with a couple first time cup winners on the other side (particularly the Sharks who I like)... :/

 

[CupsOverCash]

Coop going to Coop.

Yea it's coops fault. He's the one on the ice.

 

[CupsOverCash]

They have to be more aggressive on the puck carriers. They are fast so that makes it difficult but we are too. We just need to work harder. Hopefully Bish is ready.

 

[AlphaCatalyst]

Yea it's coops fault. He's the one on the ice.

He's the one telling the guys to sit in our own end for 40 min and wait for a chance to attack. Instead he should be telling them to apply pressure from mineute 1 not mineute 41. So yeah it is his fault.

 

[HoseEmDown]

What did Carle do right?

Not much but nobody did through the first 2 periods. Ever since Stralman came back in Game 2 we've been bleeding goals and have been badly outplayed. It's not just when Carle is on the ice, he's been mediocre this series, been on the ice same amount of goals for as against. Stralman and Coburn have been out there an insane amount against. I don't think Carle will even dress next game but he shouldn't be getting any criticism, Stralman, Hedman and Coburn are the ones who should be blamed for the poor play, the forwards as well have been poor in the backchecking and defnsive zone.

 

[Volodya Krutov]

He's the one telling the guys to sit in our own end for 40 min and wait for a chance to attack. Instead he should be telling them to apply pressure from mineute 1 not mineute 41. So yeah it is his fault.

That's what we read almost every time we lose a game. That's not what Cooper wants, he wants to keep the Pens on their heels, he wants to create turnovers, he wants a sustained possession. When you see guys sitting in their own end, it is also related to bad execution (poor passing, decision making, effort, positioning and all). We don't have the puck, we don't have the shift-per-shift momentum, we're getting tired, we're giving up one, two, three goals. We lost.

 

[Lord Stan 2020]

that's what we read almost every time we lose a game. That's not what cooper wants, he wants to keep the pens on their heels, he wants to create turnovers, he wants a sustained possession. When you see guys sitting in their own end, it is also related to bad execution (poor passing, decision making, effort, positioning and all). We don't have the puck, we don't have the shift-per-shift momentum, we're getting tired, we're giving up one, two, three goals. We lost.

huge

 

[Sky04]

Coop going to Coop.

Not really Coops fault on this one...he played the lines pretty well, and used Drouin exceptionally.

Coops fault Hedman and Stralman completely **** the bed in their roles last night? Or that Johnson had half a dozen turnovers?

 

[Hoek]

Yeah I'm pretty sure he's not telling them to sit back, it just looks that way because of the poor play and lack of skating. The Penguins are really good at exploiting every bit of tentativeness we show.