Buddy Bizarre
Registered User
- Jul 9, 2021
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If we get another point this weekend, it will be a surprise lol…we could take one of these teams to OT…maybeBah, at least we will have gotten 1 point on this trip!! Doesn't look good this weekend
I was going to post something similar. There is something seriously wrong with the gameplan to be giving up these many odd man rushes (happened last season as well). Even a poorly talented team should be able to mitigate against this happening to them.This isn't meant to be a defense of Jarry (because I know some will interpret it to be that), but I'm confused for why there has been so much talk about the goalies when the problem is this team is horrendous defensively. I don't understand giving Nedjelkovic crap after a 4-3 SO loss when this team is bleeding high danger chances against. This is probably the worst defensively I can recall the Penguins being under Sullivan, but I feel like I've seen more posts complaining about the goalies than I have about the defense.
Nedjelkovic is more of a 1B/platoon goalie, Blomqvist is very raw and Jarry looks completely broken, but I think the defense is far larger of an issue and is making the flaws with the goalies stand out far more.
Has there really been anyone blaming Ned these past 2 games?This isn't meant to be a defense of Jarry (because I know some will interpret it to be that), but I'm confused for why there has been so much talk about the goalies when the problem is this team is horrendous defensively. I don't understand giving Nedjelkovic crap after a 4-3 SO loss when this team is bleeding high danger chances against. This is probably the worst defensively I can recall the Penguins being under Sullivan, but I feel like I've seen more posts complaining about the goalies than I have about the defense.
Nedjelkovic is more of a 1B/platoon goalie, Blomqvist is very raw and Jarry looks completely broken, but I think the defense is far larger of an issue and is making the flaws with the goalies stand out far more.
Has there really been anyone blaming Ned these past 2 games?
The D sucks. The difference between Ned and Jarry is that Ned stops the ones he should most of the time.
Yea there’s no reason to blame Ned. He has held up his end of the bargain and then some. You can only stop so many 2 on 1’s and chances from 2 feet away until a couple get by you. This team is dreadful from top to bottom.There's already a couple posts in the PGT giving Nedjelkovic a minus for the game last night and saying "he needs to be better with the defense in front of him".
One thing he did that I loved was mustache boy. They actually practiced it and he talked about it being an important part of the game that they need to be good at. Granted, you had one of the best shootout goalies in history but we were quite decent at them. He goes away and poof! Not a care in the world for it.There is a lot to not like about Bylsma’s coaching career, but I can’t remember any time he simply just gave up on getting points in OT or on special teams like we have.
Agreed but I think there are a couple more layers to that as well:How can you guys possibly put this on Ned? He was the only reason we even made it to OT!
Sure he sucked in the shootout, but honestly he's never really been that good in the shootout. I would seriously consider putting in Jarry just for the shootout (Blomq is an unknown to me right now).
My take....
The problem is the exact same as every other game. Our D has difficulty controlling our zone.
AND....
We can't hold a lead if our life depended on it.
I will say, at least it's entertaining to watch (for the most part). More so than it was last year.Agreed but I think there are a couple more layers to that as well:
- they don't have a good defensive zone system.
- they don't have good defensive players.
- they don't have any decent players that are willing to be defensively responsible because there is limited accountability on that front.
- they don't have any fast/quick players that can close gaps and make up for minor mistakes.
I mean, the fact is, this roster just isn't very good. We all knew where they would be so it's not like this should be a super shocking game. The only thing that hurts though is when you miss the playoffs by 1-2 points, it's these types of games that sting. They all should remember this from last year but it doesn't seem like they care much.
This has been an issue for quite a while now. Like a blatant, glaring issue. The number of times I've watched 5 guys stare at a puck while someone slips into position behind them, is so far beyond unacceptable it's humorous at this point.I will say, at least it's entertaining to watch (for the most part). More so than it was last year.
Let's look at some pluses...
+ Offensively our bottom 6 is useful.
Minuses...
- Agreed D system sucks...on Sully!
- not good Defenseman...okay.
- Petts has regressed right now.
- Letang isn't up to his usual level.
- Rest of the crew are spare parts.....ultimately it's not like other teams have all superstar D.
It wouldn't hard to rotate in WBS D players to see something sparks. I mean Ludvig wasn't ideal, but he really brought an edge we are missing back there.
- not good Defensive players (forwards)
- I disagree here. They have guy that can cover but everybody seems lost out there in the D zone. As if they don't know where they are supposed to be.
- fast quick players
- Beau/Glass/Pulls are pretty quick. Maybe not the most talented, but you need hustle to play D.
Also doesn't account for all the odd-man rushes and breakaways. We seem to like keeping the game up high near the blue line.
Expecting it and liking are very different things.Did people not expect this? This is who the Penguins have been for years now. It's not changing anytime soon, just like the coach.
People using "the stars are too old" as the excuse for the Pens' poor results are missing the fact that, as flawed as this roster is, it's still better than about half the teams in the league. Age isn't the reason for disorganized play in its own zone.I think the stars being too old isn't an excuse to suck. A lot of competitive teams have stars in their prime that aren't as good as Crosby and Malkin are now.
What matters is if they're worth their cap hits or if their cap hits are lower than their production / output and I think they are.