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Datsyukian-Deke

2017 ECSF Washington Caps vs. Pittsburgh Pens

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The one thing that really doesn't sit well with me is the fact there is history, the Caps haven't been able to get past the Pens in the playoffs, they come into this year's run and really think it's their year, after 2 home games, they find themselves down 0-2 and going down that same road again....then, first 5 minutes in the next game, Crosby is taken out.  It's hard to imagine there wasn't some pre-planning there.  I don't think the particular play was planned in anyway, but I think the situation presented an opportunity and you have to imagine the game plan coming in was to do something if the opportunity presented itself.

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1 hour ago, toby91_ca said:

The one thing that really doesn't sit well with me is the fact there is history, the Caps haven't been able to get past the Pens in the playoffs, they come into this year's run and really think it's their year, after 2 home games, they find themselves down 0-2 and going down that same road again....then, first 5 minutes in the next game, Crosby is taken out.  It's hard to imagine there wasn't some pre-planning there.  I don't think the particular play was planned in anyway, but I think the situation presented an opportunity and you have to imagine the game plan coming in was to do something if the opportunity presented itself.

https://sports.yahoo.com/nhl/blog/puck_daddy/post/Malkin-Non-Suspension-The-embarrassment-continu?urn=nhl,167172

Call it karma.

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1 hour ago, Jonas Mahonas said:

It sucks sometimes, but sports playoffs are often a war of attrition.  In 2013, we had a great chance to take the cup.  We needed 1 more big injury to the blackhawks.  Abdelkader took out a Ducks player and turned the tide of that series.  We needed someone to take out Keith in the Blackhawks series.  You have to pay a price in the playoffs.  

Winning in the second round of the playoffs doesn't give you the Stanley Cup.  We'd still have to beat LA and Boston.  

10 hours ago, Datsyukian-Deke said:

No Crosby

No Sheary

No Letang

No Murray

If Washington doesn't storm back and take this series they will never beat Pittsburgh in a playoff series. The stars can't align any better than that. 

The funny thing is, I still don't see them winning the Cup as the other teams in the playoffs have impressed me more than Washington.  

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14 minutes ago, GMRwings1983 said:

Winning in the second round of the playoffs doesn't give you the Stanley Cup.  We'd still have to beat LA and Boston.  

The funny thing is, I still don't see them winning the Cup as the other teams in the playoffs have impressed me more than Washington.  

Yea Washington on paper should destroy everyone. But they don't play solid enough as a team. To me that means the needle is pointing at the coaching staff. The ball had been placed on a tee. If they don't come back in this series I see it as a tremendous failure.

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4 hours ago, GMRwings1983 said:

The funny thing is, I still don't see them winning the Cup as the other teams in the playoffs have impressed me more than Washington.  

That;s the best scenario possible. Ovie beats crap out of you-know-who, and somebody else takes care of Ovie.

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8 hours ago, Datsyukian-Deke said:

Yea Washington on paper should destroy everyone. But they don't play solid enough as a team. To me that means the needle is pointing at the coaching staff. The ball had been placed on a tee. If they don't come back in this series I see it as a tremendous failure.

Washington needs to bring in a coach who isn't a playoff loser.  Boudreau and Trotz should not be your coaches if you want consistent postseason success.  

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Exactly.  Pitt was saved by a phantom high stick. This is why I wish for all bad luck on Pitt. They get babied by the NHL. It's almost like the NHL wants to erase the fact that Detroit was the last back to back Champs. f*** bettman and the NHL politics. 

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4 minutes ago, amato said:

Pretty sure the caps just got a high stick after no contact.. Bonino should play soccer. 

Can't blame the ref on that one, even slow motion looks like contact from one angle.  Total sell job for sure.  At first I was thinking that I can understand jerking the head back....I'm thinking about playing and if a stick comes up quick like that within inches of my face, I'm pulling back in reaction.....then he grabs his mouth though and my defense of him goes away.

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Just now, LeftWinger said:

Exactly.  Pitt was saved by a phantom high stick. This is why I wish for all bad luck on Pitt. They get babied by the NHL. It's almost like the NHL wants to erase the fact that Detroit was the last back to back Champs. f*** bettman and the NHL politics. 

Really....I mean....really???  Somehow, you find a way to blame the NHL and see favours for PIT on this play?  Shouldn't have been a penalty, agreed, but any other team and any other ref, seeing that at full speed, it gets called, period!

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4 minutes ago, toby91_ca said:

Can't blame the ref on that one, even slow motion looks like contact from one angle.  Total sell job for sure.  At first I was thinking that I can understand jerking the head back....I'm thinking about playing and if a stick comes up quick like that within inches of my face, I'm pulling back in reaction.....then he grabs his mouth though and my defense of him goes away.

Right, not blaming the refs.. I just hate when players pull that kind of stuff rather than just playing the game, ya know? 

Edited by amato

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Bet they didn't show that replay on the scoreboard as they did the Crosby play. Let the refs see that replay and change the call on the fly like the bulls*** on Niskanen. Bonino been hanging with the Diver too long. There should be something that can be done about that bulls***. 

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I can't understand how this is happening to the Caps.  55 win season again, nobody could be hungrier, they should want revenge for last year, the Pens are injured, they have home ice... how many things do they need to go in their favor before they can beat the Pens?  Its amazing to me that they lost both home games and they barely won a must win Game 3 and lost this one.  If they lose this series, which is a huge possibility even if Crosby's out for the remainder, they need to blow this up.  I know that sounds crazy considering all the success they've had in the regular season, but they can't keep blowing it in the postseason like this.  Winning the President's trophy isn't what this is all about.

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2 hours ago, xtrememachine1 said:

I can't understand how this is happening to the Caps.  55 win season again, nobody could be hungrier, they should want revenge for last year, the Pens are injured, they have home ice... how many things do they need to go in their favor before they can beat the Pens?  Its amazing to me that they lost both home games and they barely won a must win Game 3 and lost this one.  If they lose this series, which is a huge possibility even if Crosby's out for the remainder, they need to blow this up.  I know that sounds crazy considering all the success they've had in the regular season, but they can't keep blowing it in the postseason like this.  Winning the President's trophy isn't what this is all about.

 

Very simple.  Holtby has been subpar in the playoffs.  If he played like this in the regular season, they would have been a 4 seed.  Their so-called top defense has given up too many good scoring chances.  Those defensive players are overrated trash.  They've scored plenty of goals, but no offensive players have stood out and too many players aren't cutting it in big moments.  

Also, as I stated earlier, no-neck Barry Trotz has never gotten far in the playoffs himself.  They should have found a more proven playoff coach to replace Boudreau and Hunter.  

9 hours ago, F.Michael said:

Stick a fork in the Caps - they're pretty much done.

Hanta yo baby!

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42 minutes ago, Dabura said:

I'm starting to think Mike Sullivan might secretly be the best coach in the NHL.

He seems to be like Bill Belichick of the NHL.  No matter what happens, no matter who gets injured, no matter who they acquire or call up from the minors, everybody plays like a star.  Jake Guentzel looks like the next Brett Hull with the way he's playing right now.

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these ******* flightless birds are good, but a few little tweaks by mammals here and there make them unbeatable. f*** you zebras and f*** you buttman!!

And Ovie, oh man... I'll ask my wife to knit him good thick wool socks, he must be very cold, frozen nearly to death, staying there on the ice waiting somebody dash him a puck for a change or for a shot...

Edited by ami

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5 hours ago, Dabura said:

I'm starting to think Mike Sullivan might secretly be the best coach in the NHL.

People said the same thing about Bylsma when he took over and led the Pens to the cup.  Sullivan will probably be thrown to the wolves in about 5 years.

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6 minutes ago, Nightfall said:

People said the same thing about Bylsma when he took over and led the Pens to the cup.  Sullivan will probably be thrown to the wolves in about 5 years.

I mean, sure. I'm not outright saying he's the best coach in the NHL. The sample size is far too small at this time.

But, like xtrememachine1 said, he does seem to have a Babcockian ability to get the most out of his team. It helps to have the kind of talent he has at his disposal (Crosby alone could probably make Mike Milbury look like a tactical genius), but I don't think just any coach could've led the Pens to the Cup last season and I don't think just any coach could have this Pens team -- missing the personnel it's missing -- performing as well as it's performing right now.

I guess the million-dollar hypothetical question is this: If you switch the head coaches in this series so Sullivan is behind the Caps' bench and Trotz is behind the Pens' bench, are the Caps leading the series 3-1? Just some food for thought, nothing more.

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1 minute ago, Dabura said:

I mean, sure. I'm not outright saying he's the best coach in the NHL. The sample size is far too small at this time.

But, like xtrememachine1 said, he does seem to have a Babcockian ability to get the most out of his team. It helps to have the kind of talent he has at his disposal (Crosby alone could probably make Mike Milbury look like a tactical genius), but I don't think just any coach could've led the Pens to the Cup last season and I don't think just any coach could have this Pens team -- missing the personnel it's missing -- performing as well as it's performing right now.

I guess the million-dollar hypothetical question is this: If you switch the head coaches in this series so Sullivan is behind the Caps' bench and Trotz is behind the Pens' bench, are the Caps leading the series 3-1? Just some food for thought, nothing more.

Remember when Bylsma did the same thing with the Pens and now is out of a job?

Your final question is correct.  Could Sullivan get more out of Washington?  Don't know.  What I do know is that great players make a great coach.  Did the Pens talent make Bylsma a great coach back then?  Probably.  What about Sullivan and now?  Probably. 

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1 minute ago, Nightfall said:

Remember when Bylsma did the same thing with the Pens and now is out of a job?

Yes.

I also realize that "Bylsma tho" doesn't necessarily have any bearing on Sullivan's abilities or the success Sullivan had last season or the success Sullivan will/won't have over the next five years.

I don't disagree that what really matters is having great players, that great players can, potentially, make any coach look great. Still, I'm starting to think Mike Sullivan might be the best coach in the NHL. He burned Mike Johnston's offense-killing system to the ground and the team hasn't looked back since then. Will he ultimately crash and burn? Maybe. (Probably.) But, at this time, there isn't much to criticize, beyond pointing to Bylsma.

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4 hours ago, Dabura said:

Yes.

I also realize that "Bylsma tho" doesn't necessarily have any bearing on Sullivan's abilities or the success Sullivan had last season or the success Sullivan will/won't have over the next five years.

I don't disagree that what really matters is having great players, that great players can, potentially, make any coach look great. Still, I'm starting to think Mike Sullivan might be the best coach in the NHL. He burned Mike Johnston's offense-killing system to the ground and the team hasn't looked back since then. Will he ultimately crash and burn? Maybe. (Probably.) But, at this time, there isn't much to criticize, beyond pointing to Bylsma.

Agreed.  I think we can also point to other coaches who have excelled when taking over a team, and then fast forward a few years later and they are fired.  I think its safe to say that a coaches message gets lost and new blood is needed to keep things going.  Very very few coaches in the NHL stay at the same place for a long time.  Heck the longest tenured head coach in the NHL is Quenneville and he has been on the job 9 years.  After that you have Tippett with the Coyotes since 2009, and then in 3rd place is Cooper who has only been on the job since 2013.

Sullivan needs a larger sample size, but longevity in the NHL coaching realm revolves around getting the most out of your players.  So far, Sullivan has achieved that. 

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Damn Capitals are gonna fail again, and this is the best roster they've ever had. If only Holtby could carry his Vezina winning play over to the playoffs. Flower is outplaying him, and he would be on the bench if Murray wasn't injured. The Caps need to figure out their goalie situation in the offseason if they can't turn this s***show around, which seems kinda stupid since Holtby is last years Vezina winner and one of this years finalists. Just can't take the pressure I guess. He looks nervous sometimes, and sometimes spaced out, and often out of position and playing too deep in his net. Trots should toss his backup (not sure of his name) in there next game. Can't be much worse, and maybe he'll actually take a chance to win a Cup seriously. Wouldn't be the first time a backup has stolen a series back.

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