GDT: Flyers vs. Devils - 7:00 PM - MSG

[BostonDevil]

Yeah, we still beat good teams while we sucked. Just last year off the top of my head we beat Colorado and Tampa, the Stanley Cup finalists. It happens. Of course good teams are gonna win more games than they lose and vice versa.

Honestly don't know but when we beat Tampa and Colorado were they isolated losses in a sea of wins or did we extend some losing streak? Would be interesting for some perspective.

 

[Blackjack]

That's funny, was going to say the same about the Holtz comment. So being drafted 7OA and whatever he does in the AHL makes Holtz an NHL finisher? Can he? Maybe.

Does that make Bratt not an NHL finisher because of his draft position? Now he's an actual NHL finisher, and you're right about streaks, he's gone cold recently, but has been hot.

Where's Holtz's hot to go with his cold? I love the guy but he is here to finish and he's not doing it. Again, not giving up on him, but also don't think we can count on him.

This is the problem with all your finishers that this team has, none of them is actually finishing outside of Hughes, Nico and Bratt for a nice stretch.

I would say those are the 3. Anyone else is yet to be determined.

This is a playoff team and that's where I think they need to add

No, it's his finishing ability that makes Holtz a finisher. There are many factors that go into scoring goals, finishing ability is just one of them.

 

[Devs3cups]

Honestly don't know but when we beat Tampa and Colorado were they isolated losses in a sea of wins or did we extend some losing streak? Would be interesting for some perspective.

When we beat Colorado at home they were in a 3 L's in 4 games stretch. They also lost the game after ours. So 4 L's in 5 games. Sounds oddly familiar.

 

[guitarguyvic]

I for one actually kind of think this is a good thing to be happening. First, it humbles a young team that is still learning how to win in this league. This kind of adversity is part of the learning process. Second, and somewhat related, this kind of adversity is inevitable so I'd rather it be happening at this point of the season rather than at the end when it mean they have to try to figure it out going into the playoffs (or even worse it jeopardizes a playoff berth altogether). They built a cushion with that insane win rate in the first 25 games, this is where that cushion pays off to give them breathing room to get through this and learn.

And again, for perspective, they aren't even playing that awful or losing games by more than a goal.

 

[NJDevs26]

We’ve lost to this dogshit team twice, blew a game against Nashville, basically turned the rags season around for them

Garbage losses

LOL no we did not, they'd already won three or four in a row before that game. This is another example of trying to make things sound worse than they are.

 

[Camille the Eel]

They won't scratch him nor should they. As much as we shit on Damon for that play, why did the coaches play him and Dougie a shift in a tied game? They deserve blame for that as well, basically playing the same type of dman and not to mention the same handiness.

We also played a very aggressive game late into the third instead of trying to lock down the point once we got less than 10 minutes left and the risk of that kind of turnover and giving up that kind of chance was hugely increased. (The puck was also bouncing all over the place, the ice was shit, and it was turnover city back and forth for about 3 minutes before we gave up that goal).

And you know what, I’m happy we played it that way. We played our game and didn’t get too cautious.

I wish in hindsight we had been able to get in front of Hart more. He had a pretty good look at almost all of our shots. Have to watch that 5 on 3 again. Arguably our inability to nail one there was a key to the result.

Finally I wish Vanacek would have made that save on Koneckny. He stayed deep in his net and gave him too much to shoot at. Koneckny read him properly and I don’t think Vitek even moved much in response to the shot.

This kind of game comes down to a critical save or two. They got them tonight. We didn’t.

The effort was there. As others have noted, We played a very good game. (But not good enough).

 

[BostonDevil]

We're the youngest team in the league. What did you expect at the start of the year? You want a team that hasn't been in the playoffs for 5 years, is extremely young and inexperienced to just cruise into the playoffs?

I really think some of yall's expectations are out of whack. And I'm not even saying that the "sweaty" scenario is gonna happen, but it could.

I don't buy this - It's one of those "If I told you that they would have X record on X day, would you take it?"

Expectations change almost daily. This is why tonights loss bums me out.

As always, you guys are the best. I expected some fun in here tonight and I got it! Thanks!

 

[ZachaFlockaFlame]

We also played a very aggressive game late into the third instead of trying to lock down the point once we got less than 10 minutes left and the risk of that kind of turnover and giving up that kind of chance was hugely increased. (The puck was also bouncing all over the place, the ice was shit, and it was turnover city back and forth for about 3 minutes before we gave up that goal).

And you know what, I’m happy we played it that way. We played our game and didn’t get too cautious.

I wish in hindsight we had been able to get in front of Hart more. He had a pretty good look at almost all of our shots. Have to watch that 5 on 3 again. Arguably our inability to nail one there was a key to the result.

Finally I wish Vanacek would have made that save on Koneckny. He stayed deep in his net and gave him too much to shoot at. Koneckny read him properly and I don’t think Vitek even moved much in response to the shot.

This kind of game comes down to a critibwl save or two. They got them tonight. We didn’t.

The effort was there. As others have noted, We played a very good game. (But not good enough).

I mean it's also proof they're a pretty young team finally learning how to win. The Severson turnover tonight + the late PP versus Nashville would probably be plays that veteran teams don't make. They'll get better at those situations as time goes on.

 

[NJDevs26]

Honestly don't know but when we beat Tampa and Colorado were they isolated losses in a sea of wins or did we extend some losing streak? Would be interesting for some perspective.

Tampa won three in a row both before and after they lost to us lol...Colorado lost to us in the middle of a 1-4 stretch but then they won four in a row after that was over.

 

[guitarguyvic]

I don't buy this - It's one of those "If I told you that they would have X record on X day, would you take it?"

Expectations change almost daily. This is why tonights loss bums me out.

As always, you guys are the best. I expected some fun in here tonight and I got it! Thanks!

My suggestion would be to heed this and change your expectations then. This team wasn't going to have a 140 point season or avoid a losing streak. It turns out they aren't in the top 1% of teams in NHL history. Go figure.

 

[Bleedred]

I remember that season. I felt uneasy going into that series because of the team's recent play coupled with the Flyers going on a hot streak into the playoffs. And it ended as expected. Just a total disappointment.

That was the beginning of Marty's decline.

When someone asks me ''When did Brodeur really start declining?'' my answer is usually the start of the 2010 calendar year. Right after he had that 50 save shutout at MSG in January of 2010. His play in the 2010 calendar of the 2009-2010 season was drastically different from his 2009 play. And of course, I believe we were on pace for the best record in the history of the franchise through the 2009 part of the year or even up to the halfway point of that year.

Soft decline I would say maybe around the injury in 2008, but hard decline was 2010. Not the 2010-2011 season, but before that. And then the complete cratering came around when he came back from the pinched nerve in February of 2013.

His play from after that 50 save shutout through the playoffs and from then on was drastically different from his pre-2010's decade play. And you can even include the 2010 Olympics as a part of that.

I don't think it was all downhill for him from there, as he did have a 60-ish (I forgot what the number was) game stretch of .920%-ish goaltending from February of 2012 through February of 2013, which also included the entirety of the 2012 playoffs in that stretch.

But yeah, that second half of that season was heavy foreshadowing with what was to come the next season. We also played Marty 77 games that season at 37 years old. He really started looking absolutely exhausted from January onward.

I predicted us to lose that series to the Flyers that year in exactly 5 games. I felt like we had such a death spiral in the second half of that year that I can't even believe we somehow still got out of that year with the division win. That's how good we were in the first half.

 

[Camille the Eel]

I mean it's also proof they're a pretty young team finally learning how to win. The Severson turnover tonight + the late PP versus Nashville would probably be plays that veteran teams don't make. They'll get better at those situations as time goes on.

Yes.

And the more I think it over the more I think Vanacek gave him too much to shoot at and didn’t react on that shot. But on the other hand he’s a huge improvement on prior years and made a bunch of other wonderful stops.

 

[Bleedred]

Yes.

And the more I think it over the more I think Vanacek gave him too much to shoot at and didn’t react on that shot. But on the other hand he’s a huge improvement on prior years and made a bunch of other wonderful stops.

I'm with you. Definitely looked like a 1980's goal.

 

[Devils090]

My suggestion would be to heed this and change your expectations then. This team wasn't going to have a 140 point season or avoid a losing streak. It turns out they aren't in the top 1% of teams in NHL history. Go figure.

Flyers and Preds are both bad teams, why shouldn’t we expect to beat them

 

[NjDevsRR]

Vitek held them to 2 goals. He did his job tonight, no other discussion is needed in regards to Vitek tonight.

The story was Hart and us not getting to rebounds. That’s literally it.

 

[Bleedred]

Vitek held them to 2 goals. He did his job tonight, no other discussion is needed in regards to Vitek tonight.

The story was Hart and us not getting to rebounds. That’s literally it.

You'd like a save there. Definitely a stoppable shot. And for that, I think it's fair to say Hart was the better goalie, besides the fact that he was tested much more.

However, it was the only threatening chance the Flyers had that period and it wouldn't have happened without Severson f***ing shit up.

Unless we took a penalty, I don't think the Flyers were gonna get a chance like that or any threatening chance until 3 on 3, assuming we didn't score a regulation goal.

 

[Camille the Eel]

Flyers and Preds are both bad teams, why shouldn’t we expect to beat them

That’s why this is frustrating. We sure should have been and were favored to beat them, especially the Flyers. And we did out play them, with the important caveat that we also gave them a huge amount of grade A looks too (just think of that break away in the middle of our two power plays, for one instance).

In the end their goalie outplayed ours. Bingo that’s the result.

 

[Triumph]

Flyers and Preds are both bad teams, why shouldn’t we expect to beat them

We should. Let me know about the NHL team that wins every game against a below .500 team. Meanwhile I'll just remind myself about Devils fans jumping off bridges when they lost to Atlanta the night of the trade deadline in 03

 

[NjDevsRR]

Flyers and Preds are both bad teams, why shouldn’t we expect to beat them

Preds beat NYR and NYI twice. Guess those two teams and Devils should just give up and cry.

 

[My3Sons]

Preds beat NYR and NYI twice. Guess those two teams and Devils should just give up and cry.

Houston Diablos after Saturday’s loss.

 

[Blackjack]

Houston Diablos after Saturday’s loss.

The Lebowski version of Hotel California is playing in my head

 

[guitarguyvic]

Flyers and Preds are both bad teams, why shouldn’t we expect to beat them

The Flyers have beaten the Lightning, Islanders, Avalanche, and that team that everyone is fearing for some reason: Florida. They're a bad team that wins some of their games against good teams. Which is basically how it always goes in the NHL. Do you not pay attention to what happens outside of Devils games?

I mean shit even if you don't...you should know this just from watching our garbage teams from the past few years.

 

[Camille the Eel]

Vitek held them to 2 goals. He did his job tonight, no other discussion is needed in regards to Vitek tonight.

The story was Hart and us not getting to rebounds. That’s literally it.

Yeah that’s true. Vitek gave us more than a chance to win. And we suddenly can’t score our way out of a paper bag. But you also can’t deny that when the game was on the line, Vanacek couldn’t come up with the save on the critical shot. It was not unstoppable. Neither however was it a particularly soft goal.

I like your point about not getting to rebounds. We also didn’t screen Hart enough, fight our way inside enough, and had far too many shots blocked.

 

[NJDevs26]

Oh joy! Encore starting now.

 

[NjDevsRR]

Whats the chant going to be now

Houston Diablos after Saturday’s loss.