I NEVER thought I'd say this, but I am getting tired of watching this team play. Their play as of late has been absolutely freaking pathetic. I don't even know what else to say.
I am usually a positive person. I almost feel like giving up on the Preds, cause they look like they don't give a damn, so why should I? The one part of the year they should be focused as a laser beam and we let one of the worst teams in the league come in and have absolutely nothing to play for and outplay us in OUR OWN BUILDING. Oh and they lost their only legitimate threat offensively in Havlat, but lets make more excuses like we don't have Sully, Harts and Erat. Do they even want the Cup? Do they really 'live for this?' Do they realize we are about to lose even our grip on the 4th seed and lose home ice and will have to be on the road?
Ok I have ended my rant... I'll be waiting for my team to return on Thursday and hope they show because I don't know this one. By the way St Louis is playing pretty well so I wouldnt surprise me if they dont come in here and spank us the way we are laying down these days
It is almost as if they are playing just to try and not get anyone else injured. Besides Radulov and Weber nobody was willing to battle in the corners last night and that is how you are going to win playoff games.
Zidlicky is a liability..I had rather see VV back there.
I just want the team to come out and play solid hockey. Right now, screw which place we are in the division, conference, whatever. A few weeks ago we were talking President's Trophy. Now we're talking about a possible 6th place finish and a date with Roberto Luongo. Anyway, screw that talk.
Lets just get back to having some type of confidence. We HAVE to pick it up these last two games. Even that might not be enough.
1. Letting in soft goals. Yo Mitch, how about some freakin 5 hole drills?
2. Star players not scoring goals
3. Outhustled again...
Trotz has a real problem on his hands
The good side is that we hit 4 posts last night. So technically even though we were outplayed again, we were mere inches from blowing the Hawks out.
I was embarassed as a fan, as well as for Chris Mason in that shootout.
Hamhuis with the horrific giveaway ... Mason played a great game I thought ... the two goals they scored were unstoppable (point blank after the Hammer giveaway & Byfuglien's slap shot goal rattled the water bottle from the slot) ... **** happens last night wasn't Mason's fault that we lost the game ... they have lost it as a team
Well you cant ignore Mason's effort in the shootout. I dont think he could have played any worse than he did... LOL Atleast he didn't give up goals unscreened and shot from the blueline during regulation.
I dont know whats wrong with the team other than goaltending, defense, offense and special teams
If you ask me, then it looks like Preds are happy with their playoff spot, and are just waiting out the big run. Hope for the Pred fans that this is the case...
If you ask me, then it looks like Preds are happy with their playoff spot, and are just waiting out the big run. Hope for the Pred fans that this is the case...
An interesting point. I don't think teams lay back - but, I also think teams know their position and want to NOT suffer any injuries unduly if they can avoid it...I do think the Preds had a ton to play their guts out for insofar as their playoff position/who they will meet in the first round. But, to be idealistic means to hope that they stay healthy, and get recharged before the playoffs begin. Personally I have been surprised that the Sabres have been tearing it up as of late. Even in the midst of a really decent winning stretch, Lindy Ruff was not happy last week and had some crazy 90 minute cardio - nasty workout to get them 'in the right frame of mind' thing...odd. Chris Drury remarked that he thought the team needed the reminder of how they need to play, and hoped never to have a practice like that again! I wonder if the Preds might not need a jolt like that (?)
who are these guys and what have they done with our predators?!?
things have gotten so bad so quickly, that if it weren't so tragic it would be almost comical honestly.. despite what many on here think, i just want to say that i believe we will still make the playoffs. it might be close, but i still think somehow we will sneak in there.
playoffs? you're talking about playoffs?! i just want to win a game.
a comedy of errors tonight on the blueline. hamhuis with two god-awful turnovers. one of which he might as well have put the puck in the net for them and saved them the trouble (not that it was any trouble for them to to begin with). suter with at least three even worse ones, two of which led straight to breakaways.. and that caller to the postgame show actually had the frigging nerve to brag on suter's game?!? sure he broke up a 3 on 1, but he's the frigging guy that gave them the 3 on 1 to begin with, hard to compliment him on that. zidlicky with a missed hit gives them a 2 on 1 and a bad penalty where he slashed and hurt havlat. zanon with two bad giveaways. timonen with a bad giveaway. we simply stunk on the blueline. of course this was partially offset by the blueline scoring the only two goals we could put in the net against a bad defensive team and a weak goalie, playing with their best players sitting on the bench.
i know we were snakebit. yes we hit 3 or 4 posts. no we didn't get any breaks. but none of that is an excuse for what we saw out there tonight... we so far out talent this team it shouldn't come down to "getting breaks".
if i could have gotten my hands on wily, i think i would have choked him on the postgame show for all the excuses he made for this stinker. he must have said "this team is getting there" and things are "getting better" 10 times... amazing, based on what? certainly on nothing i saw tonight. right now this is a defeated team. a team playing with zero confidence. a team that is handling the puck like it's a hand grenade with the pin pulled. a team playing like they don't have a clue about what to do. and to have to listen to the party line for 45 minutes during a driving thunderstorm about "how things are getting better" almost sent me over the edge.
we are snakebit. i will give you that. right now, every mistake we make has a good chance of winding up in the back of our net, and at the worst possible time. meanwhile on the other end, we'd hit the crossbar shooting at an empty net on a breakaway.
we have gotten so desperate, that we were all excited for a 4th line center that was scratched most of last year and has a total of 12 points in 57 games played this year to "help get the offense back on track". that is some more wishful thinking right there.
the powerplay is beyond belief. in the last 24 games, we have gone 13 of those games without a pp goal. we're now 1 for our last 15 over the last 4 games (which has directly cost us 3 losses in those 4 games). we are only 4 for 36 in our last 9 games (6 of those losses directly contributed to by the failure of the pp). if you cann't score on a long 5 on 3 and a full two minute 4 on 3, you don't deserve to win.
offensively we are slumping so badly it's unreal. over our last 11 games we have now scored a total of 24 goals. out of our last 17 goals, 8 of them have been scored by defensemen, meaning our forwards have scored a TOTAL of only 9 goals in the past EIGHT games . paul kariya has now gone 10 consecutive games without a goal, and only one goal in the last 14 games. no goals in his last 225 MINUTES of icetime during this past stretch...
again, it's almost comical, wish i could laugh about it all.
Would you agree that our power play has been suffering as of late because we are "standing on X's" too much? There is no movement. We either have Kariya or Forsberg with the puck on the halfboards trying to thread the perfect cross-ice pass for the backdoor one-timer and it just isn't working because when we are standing still...we are incredibly easy to defend.
Our PP works best when we have movement. When Leggy and Kariya or Erat and Kariya were cycling the puck in the corner and heading to the net we got plenty of opportunities. When Sully was playing the point and passing off the puck and actually moving...we were generating opportunities.
Without movement the passing lanes are non-existent. Weber and Timonen have no shooting lanes because the lack of movement allows the defense to simply stay put in their box and take away the shooting lanes when the forwards don't move and in turn make the box rotate.
Having the PP rotate, cycle, skate in random patterns for all I care forces the defense to move to continue to cover the passing and shooting lanes. It allows for rapid puck movement and creates opportunities that wouldn't otherwise be there if the PP stood still (like we are).
I feel one of the main issues with the PP of late has been directly related to the personnel we have been missing, however it isn't an excuse. Without Sully and Erat in the lineup we have been without two of our three guys (Legwand) that can carry the puck into the zone on a consistent basis. Kariya and Forsberg do not like to carry the puck into the zone and it shows. Arnott does not have the speed to do it and Radulov is always an adventure as he tries to stickhandle through one too many defenders and creates unnecessary turnovers. In response our PP breakout looks exactly like P303 stated "a live hand-grenade" drill. When we dump in the puck we either dump it straight to the goalie (who always seems to be adept at playing the puck) or we ring it right around to Kariya/Zidlicky's side which due to their lack of size and lack of will power to take a hit to make a play (more looking Z's way on that, but it applies to PK nonetheless) it is futile and winds up back behind our own net before we know what happened.
When we get the puck in the zone and gain control I think we do a good job of setting up, but we lose all momentum when we stop moving and stand still looking for that pretty cross-ice pass for the backdoor play!
Bottom line...there has been PLENTY of opportunities for players to step up and fill the roles vacated by our players on the injury list. Those roles however far too ofter have gone unfilled and that has been a major issue. When opportunity knocks...you answer the door! Unfortunately our top players (who have the talent to do so) have not gotten off their butts to answer the door lately, nor have our role players (who are being asked to do too much for their talent level) and we have suffered the consequences.
This will not be solved by the return of anyone to the lineup. You have got to assume that Hartnell has very little stamina entering tomorrow night's game, Erat is in the same boat, and Sullivan is not to be counted on as even if he does return...not only will he be a shell of his former self, but he will also always be prone to reaggrevating this back injury that cannot even be pin-pointed down yet.
The time is approaching when our top players will have to step up to the plate and answer the door. I really don't care about the last two games. I want no more injuries and I want Hartnell and Nichol to get closer to being back in game-shape. Winning would be great, but outside of securing home-ice for the first round (which I think is HUGE) and possibly gaining some confidence...what does beating St. Louis or Colorado mean? They are both going to be home next week watching the playoffs from afar. They are both going to be great challenges though as they are fighting for jobs for next season, but until we get that mentality as well...we are going to struggle.
I share most of P303's concerns. And SLake, the only guy who I feel has stepped up and played better is Radulov (when you consider he is just a rookie, and overlook his occasional turnover/miscue). He got to play in some situations Trotz would not have let him because of the injuries.
If Trotzy is content with these last 5 games, he is dumber than I thought.
Wins, loses, not so big a deal now. Here is what is important:
1) Get and stay healthy.
2) Can he push the right buttons to get these guys playing playoff hockey? That is one thing he has not demonstrated a capacity to do, yet now he must. None of these guys can really just turn it on like a light switch.
I will say a huge opportunity is being lost with converting these bandwagon fans right now. But playoff success means more long term. A rough time to be a diehard fan...
Seriously. The division is essentially over so just focus on staying healthy going into the playoffs. And just getting about 1 more win to seal up the #4 seed.
Don't want to have something like Kronwall happen to you guys right before the playoffs.....
Seriously. The division is essentially over so just focus on staying healthy going into the playoffs. And just getting about 1 more win to seal up the #4 seed.
Don't want to have something like Kronwall happen to you guys right before the playoffs.....
My sentiments exactly. We have to get through these last two games healthy, pickup at least one more point (hopefully two or four), and get ready for Game A of the 2007 Stanley Cup Playoffs.
Momentum is a funny thing. We could have everything go wrong these next two games (please no injuries, especially anything similiar to Kronwall) and win the first game of the playoffs - gain some confidence, win game two and be back to playing at the top of our game.
The playoffs are a whole new beast. It is hard to be a diehard fan right now, but we need to stand behind this team and show them that we aren't throwing the season down the crapper and neither should they. There is a lot of hockey left to be played and I plan on taking it in from my seat at the HOP!
I purposely stayed away from the boards today....I felt the same doom and gloom that everyone seems to be feeling, so I watched the Tivo'd game last night not as a "Predator fan," but as a "hockey fan" and I came away with a different set of conclusions than I came to driving home last night after being at the game.
First...we should have won that game 6-2 at least.
The number of shots that hit the post or missed by an inch, or caught the edge of Lalime's shoulder were actually startling. We had incredible chances all night long....especially Forsberg, Kariya, Radulov, and Arnott had a couple as well. Even all our defensemen were firing the puck.
In all shot they puck a total of 65 times [shots, missed shots, and blocked down shots]....and many were very solid scoring chances and weren't just shots from the periphery.
I worry a lot more when we aren't generating those chances.
Second, we played with more intensity than I first thought as well.
We had jump most of the game....sure they came out 5-0 on shots initially in the first period, but it didn't seem as lopsided as that when I reviewed it.
Third, Mason had an extremely solid game, except for the shootout, of course....which he was basically schooled by three great moves and shots.
Fourth, the defensive zone turnovers and neutral zone turnovers were bad...really bad. But still remember, our d-men are essentially the greenest bunch in the playoffs, and they are going to tend to handle the puck like a grenade when they start holding the stick too tight. They have played like veterans all year, but this non-seasonedness [to create a new word] is the thing that may continue to haunt us unless they get their confidence back.
Overall, this was simply a game of missed opportunities...especially on the powerplay....the 5 on 3, the PP at the end of regulation, and the PP at the end of overtime. We generated a lot of shots to the net on those PPs, but with the "Concert of the Ringing Posts" and blocked down shots by their defensemen.....the actual shot totals aren't as impressive....but basically they just plain didn't connect....they weren't particularly creative, either, [but, what else is new].
Sure it sucked, and our confidence has to be hurting, doubts in the room may be rampant.....but after rewatching the game as a "hockey fan" instead as a "Predator fan"....I have more hope than I had when I woke up this morning.
Anybody else see that Kariya didn't come out to acknowledge his selection as 2nd star of the game?.......hopefully he was putting on his game face for the start of the Playoffs.....or something to that effect.
And SLake, the only guy who I feel has stepped up and played better is Radulov (when you consider he is just a rookie, and overlook his occasional turnover/miscue). He got to play in some situations Trotz would not have let him because of the injuries.
I agree. Radulov has been at the top of his game the past month since Forsberg's acquisition and especially since he has been put on a line with Peter. Radulov will be a key player down the stretch. He is a player that creates things out of nowhere. He creates a lot of scoring opportunities through his hard work and never say die attitude whenever there is a loose puck to be had and he also creates a lot of turnovers due to the same never say die attitude at times as well.
Going to football for a second, I think Radulov has still got to learn the old QB addage that says "throw the ball away and live to play another down". Radulov still tries to create too much out of nothing at times, but that is what makes him a special player and I don't want to see that change.
As he gets older he will make better decisions more consistently, however he must learn that the hard way. But it is that drive to make things work that elevates him to his status as a scoring line winger and hopefully a first-line scorer in the near future.
The worst mistake a coach can make with a young player is to put the shackles on them and suppress their energy and creativity. Think about what would have happened if they did that in Pittsburgh with Jagr or in Atlanta with Kovalchuk or in Ottawa with Marian Hossa or Martin Havlat. You let dynamic players use their G-d given talent to be the player they were born to be.
Getting way off-topic here...so...again, yes I agree that Radulov has really stepped up and I also believe that Dumont has been playing great as well. To a lesser extent...Hordichuk has been playing well the past few games as well. Hordichuk is doing his part to create offense and bang bodies, etc. He is showing that he can do more than just fight.
I purposely stayed away from the boards today....I felt the same doom and gloom that everyone seems to be feeling, so I watched the Tivo'd game last night not as a "Predator fan," but as a "hockey fan" and I came away with a different set of conclusions than I came to driving home last night after being at the game.
First...we should have won that game 6-2 at least.
The number of shots that hit the post or missed by an inch, or caught the edge of Lalime's shoulder were actually startling. We had incredible chances all night long....especially Forsberg, Kariya, Radulov, and Arnott had a couple as well. Even all our defensemen were firing the puck.
In all shot they puck a total of 65 times [shots, missed shots, and blocked down shots]....and many were very solid scoring chances and weren't just shots from the periphery.
I worry a lot more when we aren't generating those chances.
I bought two tickets in 120 for last night's game (I normally sit in 332) and totally agree with this assessment. Lalime made some great saves, but he also got lucky a lot with the puck just barely hitting him or the shots ringing the post. The Predators did have a lot of chances and I was pleased with that. As you said, I would be much more upset today and worried if they weren't creating those chances rather than not coverting on those chances. Not creating chances is a philosophy and system issue rather than a personnel issue. This simply points back to the players not stepping up and burying the chances. That will come with time...if we weren't generating the chances...then there would be concern because it is far too late in the season to make any serious adjustments to our style of play.
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Third, Mason had an extremely solid game, except for the shootout, of course....which he was basically schooled by three great moves and shots.
Agreed. Mason played solid except for the shootout and you have to give Chicago credit for exposing Mason in the shootout. I knew Mason was on top of his game early in the first period when he made a save only to have the clearing attempt go straight to the Blackhawks at the right faceoff circle and have a second shot come at him though a screen. Mason got low to see through the screen and made a blocker save out of nowhere to keep the Blackhawks off the board. I was confident then he wasn't going to suffer any ill consequences from the long layoff. Hamhuis had the horrid turnover for the first goal and Suter failed to clear the crease and in turn added to the screen on Mason for the second goal.
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Anybody else see that Kariya didn't come out to acknowledge his selection as 2nd star of the game?.......hopefully he was putting on his game face for the start of the Playoffs.....or something to that effect.
Yeah, I saw that too and was thinking the same thing. He finally got back on the scoresheet with two assists and buried his chance in the shootout, but he was evidently upset with the result. I honestly hope he threw a bit of a tantrum in the locker room because that would be big coming from one of our star players and hopefully would challenge some of our other big guns to get into the action.
