League News: NHL Talk - (News n' Scores n' Stuff) - 2021-22 season, Vol. 3, Playoffs Edition

[twabby]

Gallant should rightfully get some heat for scratching one of their good young players and instead dressing a player who was clearly too injured to play. Just a baffling decision!

 

[Langway]

Clinical.

 

[John Price]

You see both these teams with phenomenal goaltending and you see how far the Caps have to go.

 

[DWGie26]

Glad that is done! Now, go Avs!

 

[pman25]

Playing an injured Ryan Strome who couldn’t even finish the game and Dryden Hunt (wtf is that) over your 2nd overall pick from a couple years ago is certainly a choice

 

[895]

I don't really like the Avs but I cant stand the idea of a threepeat

 

[Raikkonen]

I don't really like the Avs but I cant stand the idea of a threepeat

why hate some other team for winning? if they win they win, caps arent winning this anyway

ok, for pens there should be exception... but we all know pens deserve respect too.

 

[Devil Dancer]

Threepeat doesn't bother me at all, so long as it's not a Pennsylvania team.

 

[AlexModvechkin8]

So yeah, looks like the Rangers blowing the 2-0 lead in G3 up 2-0 in the series was just like our G4 (or G5, take your pick). Can’t let your opponent who is better than you off the hook.

 

[g00n]

So yeah, looks like the Rangers blowing the 2-0 lead in G3 up 2-0 in the series was just like our G4 (or G5, take your pick). Can’t let your opponent who is better than you off the hook.

Did not watch all of the series so maybe wrong, but this could also cause Caps management to take a second look at the failure vs FLA and conclude upgrading goaltending is secondary to fixing other issues.

The thinking being, if NYR can do the exact same thing with one of the best goalies in the business then maybe the vulnerability lies elsewhere.

Maybe that's wrong maybe it's right. We probably still need better goaltending IN ADDITION to a better overall gameplan, structure, mental approach, and X number of skaters.

 

[CapitalsCupReality]

A better goalie doesn’t ensure your offense will show up, but a bad goalie can undermine it all….

 

[tycoonheart]

Threepeat doesn't bother me at all, so long as it's not a Pennsylvania team.

Yeah. I find TB to be a pretty likeable team to boot. I actually enjoy watching them.

 

[ClevelandCapsfan]

Yeah. I find TB to be a pretty likeable team to boot. I actually enjoy watching them.

Hard to like Kucherov with his lazy penalties and frequent cheap shots (e.g., shooting puck at Rangers’ player in corner with 2 seconds left ‘while sitting on a 3-1 lead).

 

[John Price]

 

[HTFN]

Did not watch all of the series so maybe wrong, but this could also cause Caps management to take a second look at the failure vs FLA and conclude upgrading goaltending is secondary to fixing other issues.

The thinking being, if NYR can do the exact same thing with one of the best goalies in the business then maybe the vulnerability lies elsewhere.

Maybe that's wrong maybe it's right. We probably still need better goaltending IN ADDITION to a better overall gameplan, structure, mental approach, and X number of skaters.

That would be a really bold conclusion when the other goalie was Vasilevskiy

 

[g00n]

That would be a really bold conclusion when the other goalie was Vasilevskiy

Bob got stronger as the series went on vs the Caps, though.

 

[895]

Maybe it's just copium, but I always defended the lack of success of the Caps as hockey is random. You see, we didn't choke, hockey is just random and we got unlucky.

That's why there have been no dynasties since the 80s. More parity, more luck, more randomness.

So if there is a new dynasty, then we have to admit that actually hockey is not as random as we thought, the better team actually does win most of the time, and the Caps core are genuinely just a bunch of losers and chokers who got lucky once.

It's kind of retrograde reasoning, I admit, but for that reason I aways root against defending champions and dynasties.

 

[HTFN]

Bob got stronger as the series went on vs the Caps, though.

Okay? If they’re comparing Samsonov and Bobrovsky to Shesterkin and Vasilevskiy I really don’t even know where to start. There is no lesson to be learned from watching two of the league’s best go at it except that maybe a better goalie would help.

It also doesn’t really make a lot of sense to skimp on a goalie again when Bob getting better over the series is just a smaller version of the same point: goalies win games. If you need the other team’s goalie to stay as bad as yours you’re f***ing up.

 

[g00n]

Okay? If they’re comparing Samsonov and Bobrovsky to Shesterkin and Vasilevskiy I really don’t even know where to start. There is no lesson to be learned from watching two of the league’s best go at it except that maybe a better goalie would help.

It also doesn’t really make a lot of sense to skimp on a goalie again when Bob getting better over the series is just a smaller version of the same point: goalies win games. If you need the other team’s goalie to stay as bad as yours you’re f***ing up.

I'm not saying it's a smart analysis. I'm speculating they might look at NYR collapsing in similar fashion with top goaltending and diminish their own need.

 

[RedRocking]

Did not watch all of the series so maybe wrong, but this could also cause Caps management to take a second look at the failure vs FLA and conclude upgrading goaltending is secondary to fixing other issues.

The thinking being, if NYR can do the exact same thing with one of the best goalies in the business then maybe the vulnerability lies elsewhere.

Maybe that's wrong maybe it's right. We probably still need better goaltending IN ADDITION to a better overall gameplan, structure, mental approach, and X number of skaters.

As for NYR, they had trouble generating offense 5v5, that was their Achilles heel. They really rode their PP this postseason (and got lucky facing Louie Domingue and Raanta). Once the refs started swallowing their whistles against TB, the Rags really struggled.

Vasi was barely tested these past few games (not that that diminishes him). On the other end, Shesterkin kept them in games, where our goalies would have given up ~ 3 more goals a game with all the grade A chances he was stopping.

So I would kinda conclude the opposite. We are pretty good at generating offense 5v5 and on the PP, but we don’t have the goaltending (obviously) and maybe consistent team D over 60 mins that NYR at times exhibited (perhaps due to younger legs).

Obviously a Vasi/Shesty doesn’t grow on trees. But hopefully there is a move to be made this off-season to upgrade and/or just get a vet who knows what they’re doing (like a Talbot, Reimer). I kinda like trying to buy low on Lehner.

 

[HTFN]

I'm not saying it's a smart analysis. I'm speculating they might look at NYR collapsing in similar fashion with top goaltending and diminish their own need.

that would bum me out so hard

if anything they should conclude that to get past Tampa they're going to need almost everything

 

[Kalopsia]

Maybe it's just copium, but I always defended the lack of success of the Caps as hockey is random. You see, we didn't choke, hockey is just random and we got unlucky.

That's why there have been no dynasties since the 80s. More parity, more luck, more randomness.

So if there is a new dynasty, then we have to admit that actually hockey is not as random as we thought, the better team actually does win most of the time, and the Caps core are genuinely just a bunch of losers and chokers who got lucky once.

It's kind of retrograde reasoning, I admit, but for that reason I aways root against defending champions and dynasties.

I think it can be both. It's largely random, but in very rare cases it's possible to rise above that sea of randomness. In the Lightning's case, they had possibly the best stretch of drafting in league history from 2011 to 2016. Here's some of their non-1st round picks in that span, all outside the top 50.

2011:
2 (58) - Nikita Kucherov
7 (208) - Ondrej Palat

2012:
4 (101) - Cedric Paquette

2014:
3 (79) - Brayden Point

2015:
3 (72) - Anthony Cirelli
4 (120) - Mathieu Joseph

2016:
4 (116) - Ross Colton

When you draft two superstars, two second liners, and a few good depth players with non-first rounders in a 6 year span, good things happen. Not exactly a repeatable strategy though.

 

[HTFN]

I think it can be both. It's largely random, but in very rare cases it's possible to rise above that sea of randomness. In the Lightning's case, they had possibly the best stretch of drafting in league history from 2011 to 2016. Here's some of their non-1st round picks in that span, all outside the top 50.

2011:
2 (58) - Nikita Kucherov
7 (208) - Ondrej Palat

2012:
4 (101) - Cedric Paquette

2014:
3 (79) - Brayden Point

2015:
3 (72) - Anthony Cirelli
4 (120) - Mathieu Joseph

2016:
4 (116) - Ross Colton

When you draft two superstars, two second liners, and a few good depth players with non-first rounders in a 6 year span, good things happen. Not exactly a repeatable strategy though.

Kind of reminds me of how everyone was sure Ken Holland was a genius for years and he was a staple on "best GM" lists because of the late round Datsyuk/Zetterberg picks and Detroit being Detroit, but then when you can't do it again over 20 years (very fair) people call you old and busted instead of reevaluating.

It all seems very similar to gambling to me: you can educate yourself and consistently play towards the best odds, but it's always going to come down to chance. Tampa has had the right pieces in the right places for a while now and struck gold late, which makes the game a little easier, but nobody stays on top forever and the dice won't always roll your way. A post here and there can change a series so it's all still a matter of odds and inches.

 

[Devil Dancer]

Please hire Torts! He's super entertaining, and not the best coach in the world. Perfect for a division rival.

 

[ChaosLord]

Threepeat doesn't bother me at all, so long as it's not a Pennsylvania team.

Plus a threepeat by the Lightning would really get under the skin of a certain Western Pennsylvania team.