Post-Game Talk: GAME 19 - Extra, Extra, Read all about it! Blues 3 Bruins 2 (OT)

[BiteThisBurrows]

You clearly don't watch the NHL. There are absolutely more than 5 F better than #88.

Right now there are 5 Wingers I take over #88 in terms of impact. Kucherov is the most dominant wing in the NHL by quite a bit. Panarin, Ranheim, M. Tkachuk and Rantanen are as impactful if not more. Then go to C and McDavid, Mackinnon, Drai and Matthews are better. more impactful.

McAvoy same thing as Makar, Fox, Heiskanen, Josi, Forsling, Morrissey and Hedman are better than McAvoy. Take the fan in glasses off.

This is a little unfair, because you are comparing players with different skill sets.

Pasta is a sniper. One of the best currently playing. He is not a playmaker. He is not a complete 2 way player. He needs a playmaker to play with him. A playmaker with 2 way ability is of course the best option (which was Bergeron). They thought Lindholm could be like that. He is not. (They also thought Zadorov could be Chara-like. He is not.)

McAvoy can be better defensively than many of those you listed. He can be better offensively than many of the primarily defensive D men in the league, but he's in between both types in terms of elite level play. In a sense he's a little caught between the two styles as the Bruins want him to be both. I had hoped (and maybe they did too) that Zadorov would be the more defensive guy which would let McAvoy focus more on becoming the offensive guy (he can shoot the puck well when he wants to) but with Zadorov being Mister Erratic/Inconsistent this didn't happen and McAvoy stays in between and maybe a little confused and over thinking as a result.

Pasta and McAvoy are NOT the problem. The problem is there aren't enough elite players on the roster. It's mostly bottom 6 and lower pairing players. Decent at times but unremarkable and unexciting (aside from the few times they play physical). Combine that with Swayman's mediocre goaltending and that's the problem and the reason this team will not go anywhere.

 

[BiteThisBurrows]

I really don't think conditioning is an issue. Players are out of shape after 20 games of an NHL regular season schedule, with practices and regular work-outs between games? Seems incredibly unlikely, especially for guys in their 20s.

I don't think it's conditioning either. I think it is because they are slow. Most of them are not elite skaters. They've been slow for years and it has sunk them in the playoffs when the tempo picks up. They went big this year but got even slower.

When you are slow you have to skate harder and work harder and that is more tiring and thus they run out of gas at times. That's not conditioning, that's just not being able to skate fast.

Consider that Brazeau, a guy considered too slow for the NHL, does not look particularly slow relative to the rest of the team. Yes, he's worked on his skating from his early days but he's still slow. Really slow. Almost the entire team is slow, why do you think DeBrusk stood out so much? He was the one truly fast guy we had.

 

[Gordoff]

I have heard from trusted sources that negotiations are happening

Bruins and Sabres trade franchises
Penguins and Bruins then trade franchises

When the Zamboni chips settle you have

Delaware North is in a position to redevelop downtown Buffalo which is in its DNA
Terry Pegula gets a chance to redevelop Pittsburgh and the Boston royal family gets stronger.

View attachment 931813

WOW Kevin, this would be the blockbuster of all blockbusters.
So the ownerships change but for the time being the players remain?
Okay.

 

[Gordoff]

"The danger in riding out the season is compromising player’s already fragile confidence in themselves, continuation of developing bad habits, and a lowering of players trade value ( selling low = poor asset management).
If things remain the same at some point upper management will have to make a choice."

Great post! I quoted the part that concerns me the most.
The fact that if a players confidence is driven so low that they can't pick up the pieces, crash & burn.
Then, the Bruins have to (possibly) pay to have them taken off our hands.
This ship needs to be righted ASAP or their value will be nil.[/QUOTE]

 

[nORRis8]

Something to cheer some gloomy Gus's up

 

[LSCII]

Morrissey:
Playing in Winnipeg often means you are overlooked, but if you watched Josh Morrissey play every night, you'd think he was a perennial shoe-in for the Norris Trophy. His offensive game is impressive: his slap shot packs a wallop, he can run a power play, and he can carry the puck on the breakout. Defensively, he is even more impressive. He's incredibly physical, blocks shots, and frequently disrupts passes.

Except when you do a comparison of McAvoy vs Morrissey, McAvoy over the length of his career has been the better player. More points per game. Better plus minus. Better shooting %. Charlie outhits him by a shit ton. He also has way more blocks per game than your guy. Morrissey's stats are skewed by 2 good seasons, but Charlie has been by far the more consistent player.

So if you ask me, there's a faction of fans here who simply don't like McAvoy for whatever reason, and the grass is always greener to them when given the chance to look at another player over Charlie. Weird dynamic but it's obvious.

 

[Jorgolyte]

This is a little unfair, because you are comparing players with different skill sets.

Pasta is a sniper. One of the best currently playing. He is not a playmaker. He is not a complete 2 way player. He needs a playmaker to play with him. A playmaker with 2 way ability is of course the best option (which was Bergeron). They thought Lindholm could be like that. He is not. (They also thought Zadorov could be Chara-like. He is not.)

McAvoy can be better defensively than many of those you listed. He can be better offensively than many of the primarily defensive D men in the league, but he's in between both types in terms of elite level play. In a sense he's a little caught between the two styles as the Bruins want him to be both. I had hoped (and maybe they did too) that Zadorov would be the more defensive guy which would let McAvoy focus more on becoming the offensive guy (he can shoot the puck well when he wants to) but with Zadorov being Mister Erratic/Inconsistent this didn't happen and McAvoy stays in between and maybe a little confused and over thinking as a result.

Pasta and McAvoy are NOT the problem. The problem is there aren't enough elite players on the roster. It's mostly bottom 6 and lower pairing players. Decent at times but unremarkable and unexciting (aside from the few times they play physical). Combine that with Swayman's mediocre goaltending and that's the problem and the reason this team will not go anywhere.

I think you have it. McAvoy and Pasta are not the problem. I think we all hoped Mac would be one of the best in the league. I think he makes too many mistakes for that but he's still damn good. Pasta is still a premier sniper, top 2 or 3 in the league, but that's all he is. We know that. He's doing the same thing he always has. They need support, they are limited without good players around them. Your assessment of the additions is right. There is just not enough talent and skating around them.
Years of poor asset management has come home to roost. Now Sweeney was compelled to use his cap space and there wasn't much there and he spent poorly, again.