Re: The NHL Thread
 

You're not wrong. However I do think last night it was classic Caps can't score in the playoffs syndrome. The Penns did get a couple lucky bounces. No denying it. They got some unlucky ones too but the Caps got zero good ones. Last night I thought the Caps carried play pretty clearly throughout all three periods. I'm not saying the Penns shouldn't be on the ice with them. They do skate well. Probably better than the Caps. But last night was clearly an example of a game where the better team lost. They're not quite hungry enough in front of the net. The Penns are doing a better job at making Holtby's job difficult. But they're not generating offense at the rate the Caps are so if the Caps can manage to fix that maybe some pucks will go in.

Re: The NHL Thread
 

The national media; social media etc...just seems to be the narrative

and as for the bolded, yea, the Caps have a good PK but Holtby is getting outplayed by Murray so far IMO...not by much, but he is

the Penguins are generating plenty of chances, and more importantly, they're cashing in

Re: The NHL Thread
 

Caps aren't getting to the front of the net...Murray is seeing everything

it took a cannon of a wrist shit that was perfectly placed by Ovie, and a scramble with an extra attacker to beat him last night

it's fun hockey for sure...but if you just listened to the NBC coverage and didn't watch the games, you'd think the Caps were up 3-0 in the series

Re: The NHL Thread
 

Yeah no I didn't have any fun last night

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:lol

obviously meant to say wrist shot* btw

Re: The NHL Thread
 

The Penguins are definitely doing a better job getting people to the front of the net, but none of the goals they scored last night were because Holtby couldn't see the puck. He saw all three. One was a great deflection, one was an unlucky bounce off Kuhnhackl's back, and one was a great play off a defensive breakdown. Sure, Murray has a better sv% and GAA this series, but I don't think it's because he's outplaying Holtby. None of the goals last night were Holtby's fault.

Re: The NHL Thread
 

yea but sometimes you need your goalie to make a save, even if the chance thats created "isn't his fault"

Murray is definitely outplaying Holtby so far, c'mon man

that can change very quickly, but so far Murray has been better

Re: The NHL Thread
 

Yeah, I thought they were the better team last night. They lead in every stat but the giveaways killed them and obviously they fell short in the most important category - goals.

Gretzky, Lemuix, Dionne, Orr, etc, etc would give Sakic a run for their money.

Yeah, it was not as late as Orpik's hit but equally as dangerous. Just a dumb move coming the game after the Orpik incident.

He was suspended 2 games for boarding Burmistrov in 2011. Also I think they will take into consideration his smashing the stick into Stalberg's throat in round one - also I cannot recall if he was suspended for crosschecking a linesman in 2013. I would guess a game or two and what may save him a game is that Johansson was back on the ice later in the game unlike Maatta.

League has set a good precedent so far by suspending Shaw for a game, Bellemare for a game, Schenn for 3 games. I will be surprised if he does not get at least one game.

Final 3 are Gostisbehere, McDavid and Panarin.

Sharks are peaking at the right time and the Blues are damn good all around so the west may have something to say about that. Even if Nashville and/or Dallas somehow advance I do not think they have the defense to contain either the Caps or Pens. Also, whomever comes out on top of that Islanders/Lightening series is not going to make it easy on either the Pens or Caps.

Yeah, he handled it very well. Classy on his part not to bitch, moan or appeal.

Re: The NHL Thread
 

I said last night on twitter the reason the NHL shouldn't take injury into account when handing out suspensions is because it gives teams incentive to make injuries look worse and hold out players who took a bad hit. For that reason, I was surprised Johansson was back in the game.

Well, guess what? The Caps just announced that Johansson is not skating today, out with an "upper body injury." So either he shouldn't have gone back into the game last night, or the Caps are just posturing for a longer suspension. Either way, it's dumb, and further reinforces my conviction that the NHL is dumb for suspending to the injury.

Re: The NHL Thread
 

Maybe I'm biased, but I just don't agree. I think the goaltending has been extremely even, and the Pens 2-1 series lead comes down to other factors, like the Caps defense. I think if you switched the goalies in this series and played the games exactly the same with the goalies facing each other's shots, the Pens would still be up 2-1.

Re: The NHL Thread
 

It's classy to not bitch, moan, or appeal a blantant late hit with a wild elbow? Mind blown

Re: The NHL Thread
 

i'm not saying Holtby's been bad at all, but Murray has been slightly better

at some point, Holtby is going to have to make a save on a deflection, or through traffic, or be in the right place at the right time

so far that hasn't happened

i never said classy, i just like the way he handled it

he was a man and took responsibility for his actions. which is more than i can say for most guys in this league

Re: The NHL Thread
 

No, I said that. JRS just seems to have an issue with anything I say. For the record I agree with what you said about Orpik and Murray.

Re: The NHL Thread
 

MoJo not skating. Out indefinitely for an upper body injury. Wonder how this will factor into Letang suspension.

Also for who was asking Letang is a repeat offender. In 2011 and 2013 I believe


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Re: The NHL Thread
 

Even if Johansson is relatively ok, they'd still be sitting him out of practice today for the reason you are sorta suggesting.

Re: The NHL Thread
 

I have no doubt it's a ploy by mgmt to get Letang more games. Gamesmanship on the Caps part. Very interesting to see how many games Letang will get now. It should be 3 to be consistent but will probably be 2


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Re: The NHL Thread
 

Apparently it's a neck injury, not a concussion. Guess that's how they're covering their asses from the "why did you play him if he's hurt" crowd.

Re: The NHL Thread
 

Blah blah blah

So much bullshit. Whole lotta focus on things that aren't the games that have been played on the ice or the ones that are coming up.

#garageleague

Re: The NHL Thread
 

Letang only one game. Pretty much what I was expecting but probably should have been 2


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Re: The NHL Thread
 

Oh and yea #garageleague


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Re: The NHL Thread
 

And the Wheel lands on: one game! To the surprise of no one.

Re: The NHL Thread
 

This surprises me. Hartley has done an amazing job with an un-amazing team. Awesome coach who would do well in a place like Anaheim or Ottawa.
I wouldn't say with complete confidence that Penns and Caps are the two best teams left. When STL is playing they're game, they are phenomenal. And the biggest contender out west is the Sharks. They might not have the razzle dazzle of the Caps or Penns, but in terms of a complete team game, not many do it better than the Sharks. If they keep this up, they could definitely come out of the West and give any East team a run.

Re: The NHL Thread
 

Curiously, Ovechkin got a 0-game suspension for this hit, which is a hair worse than Letang's hit.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8myT-qqM0TI

This is not a knock on Ovechkin as much as it is a knock on the inconsistent #garageleague. And with that, I'm done with this topic.

Re: The NHL Thread
 

i was expecting 2 games for Tanger...1 is no surprise though

almost guarantees a win for washington tomorrow...top D pair out for the Pens

Re: The NHL Thread
 

Matt can't make it to cville so I have two tickets still up for grabs (cost = buy me drinks). I think Kevin may have expressed interest so I will contact him in other methods.

Re: The NHL Thread
 

Not surprised Letang got one game for that hit. Should have been two.

I'd shake Crosby's hand sooner than Letang's.

Re: The NHL Thread
 

also, you guys have to drink all the zimas this weekend as I'll be doing the work thing.

Re: The NHL Thread
 

Yeah, completely agree with this. Blues can look unstoppable at times and the Sharks are peaking at the perfect moment. Also, whomever makes it out if the Islanders/Lightening series is going to be a tough battle for Washington or Pittsburgh.

Re: The NHL Thread
 

If this was one weekend later, I would totally take you up on this. Sounds like the Ants crew is going to have a blast there!

Re: The NHL Thread
 

Ditto, wish I could come but I have some family commitments this weekend I cannot bail on plus I have no desire to be all hungover or weary come monday when I have appts to visit both my cardiologist and my dentist!