NHL 2022-23 Playoffs RD 1: Vegas (P1) vs. Winnipeg (WC2) - (Vegas Wins series 4-1)

[pilldoc]

Schedule TBD

 

all discussion here.

 

(1) Vegas Golden Knights vs. (WC2) Winnipeg Jets

Game 1: | Tuesday, April 18, 7 p.m. | at VGK | TV: ESPN2
Game 2: | Thursday, April 20, 10 p.m. | at VGK | TV: TBS
Game 3: | Saturday, April 22, 10 p.m. | at WPG | TV: SN
Game 4: | Monday, April 24, 10 p.m. | at WPG | TV: SNW
Game 5*: | Thursday, April 27, TBD | at VGK | TV: TBD
Game 6*: | Saturday, April 29, TBD | at WPG | TV: TBD
Game 7*: | Monday, May 1, TBD | at VGK | TV: TBD

Edited April 30, 2023 by pilldoc

[Buffalo Rick]

Vegas!

[TropicalFruitGirl26]

I really don't know what to make of Winnipeg other than they have a world class, top tier goalie, and SOMETIMES look like a very dangerous team....while looking like a team that should be in the draft lottery on others.
When they score, it seems to come in bunches......when they don't, you have to wonder if their guys simply forgot how to play NHL level hockey.

Vegas is deep. They have been for years. It's why they have done so well as an "expansion" team all these years and come oh-so-close to winning it all on occasion.
This year's team is no different. They may have some questions in goal, but I think overall, they play well enough to cover those deficiencies with their combination of star power, grinders, and multi-purpose players.

Connor Hellebuyck will steal a game, maybe two, but I am going with a bit of a 'squash' result here and say the Knights take this in 5.
All games should be competitive....maybe....but Vegas gets a short series win and some time between rounds to think it over.

[Math]

Goalies: 

Defense: 

Offense: 

Special teams (PP/PK): 

Coaching: 

Mental: 

Experience: 

Robustness: 

Depth: 

 

The Jets made it by accident and because the Flames managed to sabotage themselves in an epic way. If Hellebuyck doesn't play for .960 sv% and 1.10 GAA, the Jets are toast.

 

Vegas in 6.

[yave1964]

Usually in a tossup series I go with the best goalie but I think Vegas will overcome average netminders and squeek this out

[thegx.ca]

15 hours ago, Math said:

Goalies: 

Defense: 

Offense: 

Special teams (PP/PK): 

Coaching: 

Mental: 

Experience: 

Robustness: 

Depth: 

 

The Jets made it by accident and because the Flames managed to sabotage themselves in an epic way. If Hellebuyck doesn't play for .960 sv% and 1.10 GAA, the Jets are toast.

 

Vegas in 6.

I'm thinking Winnipeg luck will continue for at least the opening round since the Hockey Gods let them in...plus Vegas highly overrated I think...I voted Jets in 7...

[pilldoc]

The Jets IMO have been Jeckyl and Hyde .... absolutely agree with @TropicalFruitGirl26 assessment.  

 

Going with Knights in 5

[Math]

Mark Stone is back.

[JR Ewing]

1 hour ago, Math said:

Mark Stone is back.

 

I'm so utterly, completely, absolutely shocked and amazed.    /s

 

 

[JR Ewing]

Just part of the reason I love this sport so much: the players are absolute animals. Morgan Barron took a skate to the face in the 1st period of game 1 against Vegas tonight. Horrible situation and just a freak accident.

 

 

About half-way into the 2nd period, and 75 stitches later, he came back to play. Hockey players are just different.

 

[Jimtown guy]

 

[SaucyJack]

Amazing how the home fans’ “Winnipeg White” have done the trick in the 3rd period, turning the Jets’ 1-4 deficit to a 4-4 tie, despite white being Vegas’ colors.

 

But they must survive a minor penalty to start the OT.

[SaucyJack]

Ouch.

 

Ouch…kill off penalties early in both OTs, dominate the first OT at even strength, hit a post…

 

…but a clearing mistake after killing a penalty leads to a 5-4 double OT loss for Winnipeg.  OMG, deflating, that.  But there will be Games 4 & 5 for sure.

[Brewin Flames]

 

[Brewin Flames]

And the Knights are on to round #2

 

 

Knights top Winnipeg 4-1, advance to second round

(AP Photo/David Becker)

By W.G. RAMIREZ

Associated Press

 

LAS VEGAS (AP) Chandler Stephenson scored twice and the Vegas Golden Knights eliminated the Winnipeg Jets from their Western Conference opening-round series with a 4-1 victory on Thursday night.

The Golden Knights became the first team to advance to the second round of the Stanley Cup Playoffs.

Vegas, which entered the league and went to the Stanley Cup Final in its inaugural season in 2018, is now 42-29 in the postseason.

Mark Stone added a goal and two assists and William Karlsson also scored for the Golden Knights. Goaltender Laurent Brossoit made 30 saves. Vezina Trophy candidate Connor Hellebuyck made 21 saves for the Jets and Kyle Connor scored late in the third period to ruin Brossoit's shutout bid.

Stephenson put Vegas on the board first just 50 seconds into the game when he took a feed from Stone and beat Hellebuyck before he could back to the right side of the crease.

Leading 1-0 after one period, the Golden Knights opened the floodgates with three second-period goals.

Stone, 42 seconds in, gathered a bouncing puck and ripped a wrist shot from the slot to double Vegas' lead, 2-0.

Next, Karlsson finished Michael Amadio's backhand pass between two Jets with a one-timer from the doorstep.

Stephenson grabbed his second goal of the game when he snapped a one-timer from the left circle during a power play midway through the second period.

Teams that hold a 3-1 lead in a best-of-seven series now hold a series record of 300-31 (.906).

ROSTER UPDATES: Nikolaj Ehlers, Karson Kuhlman and Kyle Capobianco made their 2023 Stanley Cup Playoff debuts for the Jets on Thursday night. Vegas was without Shea Theodore, Phil Kessel and Brayden McNabb, as all three sat out. Meanwhile, Vegas D Ben Hutton, 30, appeared in his first career Stanley Cup Playoff game.

[thegx.ca]

Injuries for Winnipeg ruined them these last couple games...

[Math]

And there's the first Royal Gentlemen's sweep* of this year's playoffs.

 

I know, Winnipeg were missing some key parts but the Knights were just better. Besides the overrated home-ice advantage, the goalie factor wasn't a deciding one. Hellebuyck finished with a shy 3.44 GAA/.866 sv% while Brossoit has a solid 2.42 GAA/.915 sv%.

 

* Royal Gentlemen's sweep: defines the fact that a team kindly and politely let his opponent win the first game of a series before winning the four next.

[mojo1917]

@Math ALT+0174 that "gentleman's sweep" business.  Too funny. 

[Math]

And of course, Bowness is trashing his players. Absolutely no surprises here.

[Brewin Flames]

19 minutes ago, Math said:

And of course, Bowness is trashing his players. Absolutely no surprises here.

 

 

 

[Math]

While I understand his frustration, that's such a lack of class to put it all on his players. But it's his trademark: always blame the others, he's never responsible of anything. He was exactly the same with the Stars: winning is about praising everyone, lising and that because of the refs, the schedule, and first and foremost, his dumb players not capable to apply his system while simplifying things on the extreme edge. He might be a good assistant coach but he's an awful head coach who's still stuck in the 1990s. I was so glad when he was gone despite the fluke bubble run in 2020.

 

Now I'm wondering how it's gonna look like in Winnipeg. Some of Jets' players wanted out of town before Bowness was hired, I'm wondering how it will look like. Dubois will be gone and I'm pretty sure Scheifele will be dealt at some point.

[JR Ewing]

-As ever, the lack of a salary cap during the playoffs is a joke, and it did wonders for the condition of Mark Stone's back. Pretty tough sledding for the Jets here. In a league with an $82M salary cap, this was a match-up of a $96M roster versus an $81M roster which had $19.5M out of the lineup.

 

-Something's off in Winnipeg. Players have been wanting out for awhile, and even Paul Maurice just walked away from coaching after a few dozen games last year.

 

-I think that Bowness was unduly harsh here. There wasn't pushback because the team eked its way into the playoffs, sustained injuries to their best players, and ran into a strong team with a roster far over the salary cap. Reasonable expectations had the Jets losing the series without the injuries.

 

Edited April 28, 2023 by JR Ewing

[radoran]

3 minutes ago, JR Ewing said:

-As ever, the lack of a salary cap during the playoffs is a joke, and it did wonders for the condition of Mark Stone's back. Pretty tough sledding for the Jets here. In a league with an $82M salary cap, this was a match-up of a $96M roster versus an $81M roster which had $19.5M out of the lineup.

 

The league clearly isn't going to crack down on these shenanigans, and when they finally do they will look back at a legacy of Questionable Cups.

 

And you're obviously not wrong.

 

4 minutes ago, JR Ewing said:

Something's off in Winnipeg. Players have been wanting out for awhile, and even Paul Maurice just walked away from coaching after a few dozen games last year.

 

It's tough in a Metro area with under a million people in it in southern Manitoba. Hard sell for top FAs and can compound other problems (like losing).

 

6 minutes ago, JR Ewing said:

I think that Bowness was unduly harsh here. There wasn't pushback because the team eked its way into the playoffs

 

I didn't watch enough (any) Jets games this year, but he's pointing back to January and February as well, which I think may relate to your previous comment above. I think it's tough when everyone involved knows that they're not good enough, but they have to go out there anyway. The injuries sure don't help.

 

It's a shame, because there aren't a lot of towns like Winnipeg in major league sports. But this could be a reason why.

[JR Ewing]

@MathJets players were definitely put off by Bowness over his comments.

 

 

[TropicalFruitGirl26]

At season's start, I thought the Jets were gonna be a big mess with only Connor Hellebuyck being their one real bright spot.

Then, they started winning, made the playoffs, and I got to thinking perhaps I was wrong about them after all.
But now, after this playoff loss, the head coach comments, and the general negative vibe that is seemingly around the team, everything looks like it is coming to a destructive head.

I would NOT want to be Kevin Cheveldayoff trying to sort through this mess and come out with a competitive squad over the offseason and into next year.
If he manages to pull off a miracle though, provided he is still employed by the team, and WPG comes out winning once again next season, then he should be up for GM of the Year!

At the VERY least, a new head coach needs to be brought in?
I mean, how do you look your players in the eye after the tirade Bowness had?
How do you, as a player, feel you would go through a brick wall for that man?

Like I said, Cheveldayoff has his work cut out for him.