25 Years and Counting--Thank You Senators!

[SpikeDDS]

Well we couldn't have walked into the playoffs any more backwards than we did, but we nonetheless walked in for the 25th time in a row! Congratulations to Blashill and the boys for achieving mediocrity in the most dramatic way possible.

 

The reward is that we now get to face a Tampa Bay team, and I'm actually somewhat optimistic about our chances. With Stralman and Stamkos out, we've got a fair shot to go beyond the 1st round.

 

I STILL SAY that Mantha should be in the lineup. I don't think he deserves the same minutes as, say, AA does, but PP time and a few minutes in the O zone will definitely improve our offensive game more, I think, than his defensive deficiencies will cost us on the other end. Blashill needs to see that, and I don't think he trusts Mantha yet. I reviewed some of the goals in games where Mantha played, and there were a couple of missed defensive assignments that cost us. And it's true the Mantha is -6. However, his main strength and his main contributions are on the PP, and although we did score on the PP today, it has not looked the same as it had looked for the previous 8 games when he played.

 

I'm sorry, but bringing Andersson up and then playing him for all of 1:42 for the entire game instead of putting Mantha in for 5-6 minutes? We really think that's better? I don't.

 

I just hope Howard can stay consistent enough, since we are obviously gonna ride him into the 1st round.

[yave1964]

14 hours ago, SpikeDDS said:

Well we couldn't have walked into the playoffs any more backwards than we did, but we nonetheless walked in for the 25th time in a row! Congratulations to Blashill and the boys for achieving mediocrity in the most dramatic way possible.

 

The reward is that we now get to face a Tampa Bay team, and I'm actually somewhat optimistic about our chances. With Stralman and Stamkos out, we've got a fair shot to go beyond the 1st round.

 

I STILL SAY that Mantha should be in the lineup. I don't think he deserves the same minutes as, say, AA does, but PP time and a few minutes in the O zone will definitely improve our offensive game more, I think, than his defensive deficiencies will cost us on the other end. Blashill needs to see that, and I don't think he trusts Mantha yet. I reviewed some of the goals in games where Mantha played, and there were a couple of missed defensive assignments that cost us. And it's true the Mantha is -6. However, his main strength and his main contributions are on the PP, and although we did score on the PP today, it has not looked the same as it had looked for the previous 8 games when he played.

 

I'm sorry, but bringing Andersson up and then playing him for all of 1:42 for the entire game instead of putting Mantha in for 5-6 minutes? We really think that's better? I don't.

 

I just hope Howard can stay consistent enough, since we are obviously gonna ride him into the 1st round.

  Still not sold on Howard. Not by a longshot.

 

Like you said, I love our matchup, it is becoming a very solid rivalry, Yzerman leaving and building the Bolts along the Wings template, a great 7 game series last year, and now they meet up again. Now if only we sign Stamkos away (heh, heh) it would really get the juices flowing.

  And I am hoping the Isles play the Panthers, because whoever comes out of that series the Wings would match up very nicely against. As average of a season as we had it is very conceivable that we could make the conference finals.

  Agreed on Mantha, if you are going to play Andersson 2 minutes you may as well give Mantha 7 instead.

 It was not pretty but we made it again.

[SpikeDDS]

30 minutes ago, yave1964 said:

  Still not sold on Howard. Not by a longshot.

 

Like you said, I love our matchup, it is becoming a very solid rivalry, Yzerman leaving and building the Bolts along the Wings template, a great 7 game series last year, and now they meet up again. Now if only we sign Stamkos away (heh, heh) it would really get the juices flowing.

  And I am hoping the Isles play the Panthers, because whoever comes out of that series the Wings would match up very nicely against. As average of a season as we had it is very conceivable that we could make the conference finals.

  Agreed on Mantha, if you are going to play Andersson 2 minutes you may as well give Mantha 7 instead.

 It was not pretty but we made it again.

If you somehow got the impression that I am comfortable riding Howard, then I said it wrong, because I don't trust Howard beyond 1 bad goal, to be honest. I am HOPING that all this time on the bench will reset Mrazek's head, so that when and if (and very possibly when) Howard falters, he is ready to come in and be the wall that he has demonstrated that he can be.

 

And signing Stamkos WOULD be an epic coup. Only thing now is with his health concerns. I don't want to see yet another big contract that we end up regretting. Let's just say that over the last few years, KH hasn't exactly had the greatest of success in his FA signings and trades either, in addition to those two huge contracts that are now hanging over us. Think Weiss. And if Pav were to leave (and I'm with you, I don't think he does, particularly if we make some headway into the SCPs and show progression to the point where Datsyuk can reasonably project a possible Cup in his final NHL season if we make some moves in the summer), we have even one more contract that we regret.

 

Unless Nyke breaks with history and tears up the scoresheet in the playoffs, I would say he is a good candidate for trade bait. Obviously, if Stamkos is even going to be considered, we cannot sign Helm.

 

It'll be interesting to see if Yzerman calls up Drouin or not to try to improve his moveability. I suspect he won't, but if they don't play well early in the series, particularly if they struggle offensively without Stamkos...you never know.

 

I agree with you--especially since without Mantha, I didn't even think we'd be here--that the way these playoffs have lined up, and with the potential (both good and bad) for roster changes over the summer, that this could be the most intriguing playoff & postseason for the RWs in years!

[yave1964]

24 minutes ago, SpikeDDS said:

If you somehow got the impression that I am comfortable riding Howard, then I said it wrong, because I don't trust Howard beyond 1 bad goal, to be honest. I am HOPING that all this time on the bench will reset Mrazek's head, so that when and if (and very possibly when) Howard falters, he is ready to come in and be the wall that he has demonstrated that he can be.

 

And signing Stamkos WOULD be an epic coup. Only thing now is with his health concerns. I don't want to see yet another big contract that we end up regretting. Let's just say that over the last few years, KH hasn't exactly had the greatest of success in his FA signings and trades either, in addition to those two huge contracts that are now hanging over us. Think Weiss. And if Pav were to leave (and I'm with you, I don't think he does, particularly if we make some headway into the SCPs and show progression to the point where Datsyuk can reasonably project a possible Cup in his final NHL season if we make some moves in the summer), we have even one more contract that we regret.

 

Unless Nyke breaks with history and tears up the scoresheet in the playoffs, I would say he is a good candidate for trade bait. Obviously, if Stamkos is even going to be considered, we cannot sign Helm.

 

It'll be interesting to see if Yzerman calls up Drouin or not to try to improve his moveability. I suspect he won't, but if they don't play well early in the series, particularly if they struggle offensively without Stamkos...you never know.

 

I agree with you--especially since without Mantha, I didn't even think we'd be here--that the way these playoffs have lined up, and with the potential (both good and bad) for roster changes over the summer, that this could be the most intriguing playoff & postseason for the RWs in years!

Oh I know you are not sold on Howard, neither am I, it is like wearing ice skates on a high wire, you know eventually it is not going to end well. I am hoping right along with you that when Mrazek gets in that he has it together.

  Agreed on Nyquist. He was very soft and ordinary this year and we have other and better options moving forward so this postseason could be make or break for him.

  Helm was playing a middle six role this year and he only managed 13 goals and 12 assists, he played on the wing all year, I think he is very replacable. I feel his game has slipped this year. I feel he is still valuable but his performance was absolutely off. I would much rather return Richards than Helm, over half of Richards points came on the power play. I think he fits our need for 2016-17 more than Helm, especially if Miller returns to his P/K role.

  With Stralman and Stamkos out and possibly Callahan as well, the Bolts are VERY vulnerable. Here is hoping we make it past the first round.

[Old School Hockey]

On Saturday, April 09, 2016 at 3:34 PM, SpikeDDS said:

Well we couldn't have walked into the playoffs any more backwards than we did, but we nonetheless walked in for the 25th time in a row! Congratulations to Blashill and the boys for achieving mediocrity in the most dramatic way possible.

 

The reward is that we now get to face a Tampa Bay team, and I'm actually somewhat optimistic about our chances. With Stralman and Stamkos out, we've got a fair shot to go beyond the 1st round.

 

I STILL SAY that Mantha should be in the lineup. I don't think he deserves the same minutes as, say, AA does, but PP time and a few minutes in the O zone will definitely improve our offensive game more, I think, than his defensive deficiencies will cost us on the other end. Blashill needs to see that, and I don't think he trusts Mantha yet. I reviewed some of the goals in games where Mantha played, and there were a couple of missed defensive assignments that cost us. And it's true the Mantha is -6. However, his main strength and his main contributions are on the PP, and although we did score on the PP today, it has not looked the same as it had looked for the previous 8 games when he played.

 

I'm sorry, but bringing Andersson up and then playing him for all of 1:42 for the entire game instead of putting Mantha in for 5-6 minutes? We really think that's better? I don't.

 

I just hope Howard can stay consistent enough, since we are obviously gonna ride him into the 1st round.

If I'm wrong I'll be the first to admit it.  But Starting Howard will cost the Wings at least 2 games.  I don't care about the normal argument of "well goalies can't win if the team can't score"!  Normally bad goals take the wind out of sails of teams like the Wings.  The playoff future (series wins) is 100% on the back of Howard.  The history of his roller coaster career does not give us a real fighting chance.

[SpikeDDS]

43 minutes ago, Old School Hockey said:

If I'm wrong I'll be the first to admit it.  But Starting Howard will cost the Wings at least 2 games.  I don't care about the normal argument of "well goalies can't win if the team can't score"!  Normally bad goals take the wind out of sails of teams like the Wings.  The playoff future (series wins) is 100% on the back of Howard.  The history of his roller coaster career does not give us a real fighting chance.

The only thing disagree with is that I don't think Howard will have a long enough leash to cost us 2 games himself. He may cost us 1. And you could POSSIBLY say one more for not having Mrazek going to build his confidence enough, but that's still more Mrazek than Howard.

 

Short leash for Howard, but honestly, he earned the nod, much as I would prefer Mrazek to have done so.

[Old School Hockey]

On April 12, 2016 at 1:04 PM, SpikeDDS said:

The only thing disagree with is that I don't think Howard will have a long enough leash to cost us 2 games himself. He may cost us 1. And you could POSSIBLY say one more for not having Mrazek going to build his confidence enough, but that's still more Mrazek than Howard.

 

Short leash for Howard, but honestly, he earned the nod, much as I would prefer Mrazek to have done so.

.912 save pct isn't going to win many playoff games.

The other guy was .944 and won.

[SpikeDDS]

8 hours ago, Old School Hockey said:

.912 save pct isn't going to win many playoff games.

The other guy was .944 and won.

If you are trying to convince me that Bishop is the better goalie over Howard, you can stop, because I have no such illusions. In fact, I think Mrazek HAS THE POTENTIAL to be better than Bishop, but unfortunately down the stretch he also showed that he can be positively mediocre when his head isn't right. Right now, neither of our goaltenders are as good as Bishop, so if you are counting on goaltending to be the main thing that helps us win, you're about to be very disappointed.

 

If we are going to beat TBL, our goalie is going to have to be good ENOUGH. Even though I know he CAN do it, we cannot rely on Mrazek or Howard to steal games for us right now. That Game 1 from last year, where we only had 14 shots and TBL had 43 and we won? I just don't see that happening this year. Mrazek without his moxie cannot pull that off. Howard can't pull that off. Maybe in rare exception, he can, but in a 7-game series, he can't do it enough.

 

No, if we are to win this series, our guys skating in front of our goalie, whoever it is, have to win it, and the goalie just has to be good enough to not lose it. When players like Helm, who are usually reliable defensively, cough up pucks, lose puck battles, and for crying out loud we got KILLED in the face off circle! If those things stay the same, we could have Holtby in goal, and we still won't win the series.

 

Howard is A problem, but he is not THE problem. The problem is that we are desperately mediocre.

 

And I still contend that we are going to go down with one of our best playoff bodies not even in the building. I simply do not (fully) understand why Andersson and Jurco are playing and Mantha is in GR. Our PP was 0-fer-what last night? Sound familiar? Granted, we did create some decent opportunities on the PP last night, but not enough to keep us from going 0-fer. Look down the stretch at how the PP did with Mantha vs. without him. A STARK contrast. Our problem right now is that no one is finishing. Nyke has it in the slot--WITH TIME!--and misses the net. Green was one of our best players last night, and he scored one, but how many did he miss that were golden opportunities? Even Pav sent a couple wide or over.

 

I'm gonna say it--as good as Bishop was last night, there were SEVERAL opportunities where we had pucks right around the crease, and we couldn't score, because their D were the ones that were there to clear the pucks away. We just have no one that consistently finishes in that area, scoring the dirty goals. Abby is competent at best, but certainly not consistent. I say Mantha adds exactly what we need, despite his deficiencies. I think he adds more than he subtracts, ESPECIALLY in playoff-style games. If we lose this series with him remaining in GR or on the bench, I will be PISSED!

[Old School Hockey]

7 minutes ago, SpikeDDS said:

If you are trying to convince me that Bishop is the better goalie over Howard, you can stop, because I have no such illusions. In fact, I think Mrazek HAS THE POTENTIAL to be better than Bishop, but unfortunately down the stretch he also showed that he can be positively mediocre when his head isn't right. Right now, neither of our goaltenders are as good as Bishop, so if you are counting on goaltending to be the main thing that helps us win, you're about to be very disappointed.

 

If we are going to beat TBL, our goalie is going to have to be good ENOUGH. Even though I know he CAN do it, we cannot rely on Mrazek or Howard to steal games for us right now. That Game 1 from last year, where we only had 14 shots and TBL had 43 and we won? I just don't see that happening this year. Mrazek without his moxie cannot pull that off. Howard can't pull that off. Maybe in rare exception, he can, but in a 7-game series, he can't do it enough.

 

No, if we are to win this series, our guys skating in front of our goalie, whoever it is, have to win it, and the goalie just has to be good enough to not lose it. When players like Helm, who are usually reliable defensively, cough up pucks, lose puck battles, and for crying out loud we got KILLED in the face off circle! If those things stay the same, we could have Holtby in goal, and we still won't win the series.

 

Howard is A problem, but he is not THE problem. The problem is that we are desperately mediocre.

 

And I still contend that we are going to go down with one of our best playoff bodies not even in the building. I simply do not (fully) understand why Andersson and Jurco are playing and Mantha is in GR. Our PP was 0-fer-what last night? Sound familiar? Granted, we did create some decent opportunities on the PP last night, but not enough to keep us from going 0-fer. Look down the stretch at how the PP did with Mantha vs. without him. A STARK contrast. Our problem right now is that no one is finishing. Nyke has it in the slot--WITH TIME!--and misses the net. Green was one of our best players last night, and he scored one, but how many did he miss that were golden opportunities? Even Pav sent a couple wide or over.

 

I'm gonna say it--as good as Bishop was last night, there were SEVERAL opportunities where we had pucks right around the crease, and we couldn't score, because their D were the ones that were there to clear the pucks away. We just have no one that consistently finishes in that area, scoring the dirty goals. Abby is competent at best, but certainly not consistent. I say Mantha adds exactly what we need, despite his deficiencies. I think he adds more than he subtracts, ESPECIALLY in playoff-style games. If we lose this series with him remaining in GR or on the bench, I will be PISSED!

Last night Bishop was better.  The goals scored on him were flukes.  The first 2 goals on Howard were 2 he had to save PERIOD.

[SpikeDDS]

5 minutes ago, Old School Hockey said:

Last night Bishop was better.  The goals scored on him were flukes.  The first 2 goals on Howard were 2 he had to save PERIOD.

I agree with you on the second goal. Not the first. Cross-ice pass for a one timer from Kucherov? That's a tough save for even the best.

 

But you totally ignored my point. You are so biased against Howard that you fail to see that we lost this game because we missed our opportunities when we had them--and not just because Bishop was good--and then TBL got going in the 3rd, and we couldn't even get the puck beyond the red line! Not even to ice it!

 

AS I SAID BEFORE, if you are counting on our goalie winning this for us, you are GOING to be disappointed. Howard didn't help, but he didn't lose this himself. WE lost this game, Howard included. And for the record, I start Mrazek next game, if it is up to me. But I don't blame this loss on Howard like you do. Let's be honest. This game wasn't as close as the score made it. TBL OWNED 80% of that 3rd period. They wanted it more.

[yave1964]

I don't know about you guys, but I felt that was one hell of a fun game. Yeah, we lost, but every shift was a battle, both teams left it out on the ice all night long. Home ice won it for Tampa, if we steal a game from them in game 2, and continue to play the way we did in game one I think the Wings can win this one. I do not feel beaten today, or robbed, that is the type of game that I love to watch.

[SpikeDDS]

3 minutes ago, yave1964 said:

I don't know about you guys, but I felt that was one hell of a fun game. Yeah, we lost, but every shift was a battle, both teams left it out on the ice all night long. Home ice won it for Tampa, if we steal a game from them in game 2, and continue to play the way we did in game one I think the Wings can win this one. I do not feel beaten today, or robbed, that is the type of game that I love to watch.

Well, I'll agree we didn't get robbed. TBL deserved the win. They finished better than we did. We both created a number of opportunities, although I really thought TBL took it to us in the 3rd. We had them for the first part of the 2nd, but I think TBL owned possession overall. We were out shooting them for the first half of the game by a wide margin. TBL corrected that.

 

Quite honestly, I enjoyed the feistiness. If this series goes long, it's gonna be fun. But we've gotta finish better than we did last night. The guys that we count on to finish did not. The guys TBL counts to finish did. To me, that was the game. And their D clearing the loose pucks around the net or Val Filppula just getting his stick in there in time to deflect Green's slot shot vs. Kucherov burying a rebound.

 

When the guys you count on to finish don't finish, AND when guys you normally count on to be reliable defensively have bad games--last night it was Helm--you are not going to win many of those games.

 

But as far as the style of game goes, yep I like it. I just wish we were better equipped for it.

[yave1964]

1 minute ago, SpikeDDS said:

Well, I'll agree we didn't get robbed. TBL deserved the win. They finished better than we did. We both created a number of opportunities, although I really thought TBL took it to us in the 3rd. We had them for the first part of the 2nd, but I think TBL owned possession overall. We were out shooting them for the first half of the game by a wide margin. TBL corrected that.

 

Quite honestly, I enjoyed the feistiness. If this series goes long, it's gonna be fun. But we've gotta finish better than we did last night. The guys that we count on to finish did not. The guys TBL counts to finish did. To me, that was the game. And their D clearing the loose pucks around the net or Val Filppula just getting his stick in there in time to deflect Green's slot shot vs. Kucherov burying a rebound.

 

When the guys you count on to finish don't finish, AND when guys you normally count on to be reliable defensively have bad games--last night it was Helm--you are not going to win many of those games.

 

But as far as the style of game goes, yep I like it. I just wish we were better equipped for it.

actually over a long series I feel we are better equipped than the Bolts for that type of game. the chippiness, the ruggedness, frankly excepting three or four guys on the Lightning I think we easily are the better team for that kind of game. Time will tell but if every game is played like last night I feel we will wear them down.

[Old School Hockey]

14 minutes ago, SpikeDDS said:

I agree with you on the second goal. Not the first. Cross-ice pass for a one timer from Kucherov? That's a tough save for even the best.

 

But you totally ignored my point. You are so biased against Howard that you fail to see that we lost this game because we missed our opportunities when we had them--and not just because Bishop was good--and then TBL got going in the 3rd, and we couldn't even get the puck beyond the red line! Not even to ice it!

 

AS I SAID BEFORE, if you are counting on our goalie winning this for us, you are GOING to be disappointed. Howard didn't help, but he didn't lose this himself. WE lost this game, Howard included. And for the record, I start Mrazek next game, if it is up to me. But I don't blame this loss on Howard like you do. Let's be honest. This game wasn't as close as the score made it. TBL OWNED 80% of that 3rd period. They wanted it more.

I'm counting on the $5.4m goalie to steal games.  Nothing more nothing less.  When you're the underdog your goalie has to steal games PERIOD.

 

I'm sick and tired (not you specifically) of people using excuses for this guy.  Holland can lie his ass of all he wants!!!  There weren't any takers for Howard.  There isn't a big market for a $5.4m mediocre at best goalie.

 

In my opinion the 2nd goal was the back breaker.  It deflated the team and fired up TB.

 

I hold my breathe on EVERY shot on net, because we know the softie is coming.

[SpikeDDS]

1 minute ago, yave1964 said:

actually over a long series I feel we are better equipped than the Bolts for that type of game. the chippiness, the ruggedness, frankly excepting three or four guys on the Lightning I think we easily are the better team for that kind of game. Time will tell but if every game is played like last night I feel we will wear them down.

As we were last night? I dunno. I think--like he has done pretty consistently against us--Boyle will be more of a factor as the series goes on. We have no answer for Boyle's big body.

 

Oh, wait! We do!

 

But alas, he is in GR.

 

I think you've got more of an argument with Mantha in the lineup than without him.

[SpikeDDS]

5 minutes ago, Old School Hockey said:

I'm counting on the $5.4m goalie to steal games.  Nothing more nothing less.  When you're the underdog your goalie has to steal games PERIOD.

 

I'm sick and tired (not you specifically) of people using excuses for this guy.  Holland can lie his ass of all he wants!!!  There weren't any takers for Howard.  There isn't a big market for a $5.4m mediocre at best goalie.

 

In my opinion the 2nd goal was the back breaker.  It deflated the team and fired up TB.

 

I hold my breathe on EVERY shot on net, because we know the softie is coming.

Listen, I GET WHAT YOU ARE SAYING! But Howard is NOT the only reason we lost this game! You can point to that 2nd goal if you want. I agree he should have stopped it. I already said so. I'm not making excuses for Howard.

 

What I am saying is we HAD opportunities to score, and we didn't. We had SEVERAL. And they weren't all because Bishop was so good. They were juicy pucks in the crease, Bishop wasn't there...and we didn't have guys there to put them in. And when we DID have guys in the slot, with the puck, WITH TIME, not only didn't we put them IN the net, we didn't put them ON net! Bishop didn't even HAVE to come up with the big save. We missed the net!

 

You are so focused on Howard that you are failing to see the failures elsewhere. Howard makes that stop on Kucherov, we don't necessarily win that game. We are simply tied. And looking at the overall game, if I was betting on who was going to score the next goal, I'd be betting TBL, AND NOT JUST BECAUSE OF HOWARD! Because the guys who they count on to finish were doing their jobs. The guys we count on to do their jobs...didn't. That, to me, is the reason we lost Game 1.

 

When that goal was called back on the challenge, where was our pushback? TBL continued to steamroll us. They won this game because they kept the puck in our side of the red line significantly more than we did. Howard wasn't bad in the 3rd. WE WERE. TBL just flat outplayed us. It was will.

 

Howard didn't help matters, but we didn't lose because of him. We lost because of Howard AND Nyke, AND Pav, AND Helm, AND Green, and...

 

But I agree with you that I would start Mrazek next game. But I don't put game one on Howard's shoulders as much as you do. But, like I'm saying about Mantha, you don't go down with your best stallions in the stable. I think both of those guys make us better.

[Old School Hockey]

7 minutes ago, SpikeDDS said:

Listen, I GET WHAT YOU ARE SAYING! But Howard is NOT the only reason we lost this game! You can point to that 2nd goal if you want. I agree he should have stopped it. I already said so. I'm not making excuses for Howard.

 

What I am saying is we HAD opportunities to score, and we didn't. We had SEVERAL. And they weren't all because Bishop was so good. They were juicy pucks in the crease, Bishop wasn't there...and we didn't have guys there to put them in. And when we DID have guys in the slot, with the puck, WITH TIME, not only didn't we put them IN the net, we didn't put them ON net! Bishop didn't even HAVE to come up with the big save. We missed the net!

 

You are so focused on Howard that you are failing to see the failures elsewhere. Howard makes that stop on Kucherov, we don't necessarily win that game. We are simply tied. And looking at the overall game, if I was betting on who was going to score the next goal, I'd be betting TBL, AND NOT JUST BECAUSE OF HOWARD! Because the guys who they count on to finish were doing their jobs. The guys we count on to do their jobs...didn't. That, to me, is the reason we lost Game 1.

 

When that goal was called back on the challenge, where was our pushback? TBL continued to steamroll us. They won this game because they kept the puck in our side of the red line significantly more than we did. Howard wasn't bad in the 3rd. WE WERE. TBL just flat outplayed us. It was will.

 

Howard didn't help matters, but we didn't lose because of him. We lost because of Howard AND Nyke, AND Pav, AND Helm, AND Green, and...

 

But I agree with you that I would start Mrazek next game. But I don't put game one on Howard's shoulders as much as you do. But, like I'm saying about Mantha, you don't go down with your best stallions in the stable. I think both of those guys make us better.

I get EVERYTHING you're saying...........but this the Howard  phenomenon.   He lets bad goals and it goes downhill from there as a team EVERYTIME.

[SpikeDDS]

1 hour ago, Old School Hockey said:

I get EVERYTHING you're saying...........but this the Howard  phenomenon.   He lets bad goals and it goes downhill from there as a team EVERYTIME.

I'm not denying that.

 

But the other side, which you seem to have trouble acknowledging because you can't get past that, is look at the numbers for the season. When we were playing our BEST hockey was when Mrazek was saving above .950. But we're we steamrolling like TBL did as they approached the playoffs before Stankos went down? Not even close. We were good. They were better. Mrazek WAS Bishop. But our offense was inconsistent at best, dismal at worst. Our PP was DISGUSTING! It was almost like giving the other team's top lines 2 minutes of rest, because we weren't about to score! Mrazek being in goal didn't change that.

 

Now, TBL is without Stamkos. Without Stralman. That's the only reason we have a shot in this series, to be blunt. But if our guys don't finish when they have opportunities to finish, we lose, and it doesn't matter if Mrazek is in net or not. He may take the series deeper, perhaps. When Gustav Nyquist has a teed up shot in the middle of the slot, with Bishop out of position, and he doesn't even hit the net with the shot? I can argue that is why we lost just as strongly as Howard letting in that 2nd goal. They both tie the game. (What burns my butt about that is that all along, we have been buying that Nyke can't score in the playoffs because he needs time and space in order to score. Well...? And how much is he getting paid? 3 goals in the last 31 games?) I'm upset that Howard is getting paid what he is, just like you are. But I'm ALSO upset that we are paying Nyke and what do we have to show for it? And if history is any predictor, I don't expect that to change much. See my signature.

 

You see, you can focus on Howard, and what you are saying about Howard isn't necessarily wrong, it's just not the whole picture. You're seeing mostly what you want to see, and it's preventing you from seeing other. The reality is that our secondary scorers, and to a significant degree our primary scorers--where's Larkin? Where's Z? Last night, Pav missed a few times too, although he's been more consistent--are not doing their jobs. We are missing opportunities. Howard is ALSO not stopping them all. And then further you have a guy who has been reliable densively, Helm, have a bad game. Guess what, he's partly to blame too.

 

You are right in expressing frustration with Howard. I share it. I, like you, am anticipating softie. But Mrazek did NOT have his head right, even with multiple chances down the stretch. Howard didn't play well enough to take us into the playoffs. He played well enough to allow our guys to win IF they played their game. They didn't, and we almost ended the streak because of it, not because of Howard, but DESPITE him. I see that trend continuing. I liked the style of this game, but when I look at how their players responded to the opportunity vs. ours, the right team won, and not simply because of 1 soft goal. It was more than than. It wa more of the same thing we've been watching, just with a feistier game style.

 

Bottom line: If the players skating in front of our goalie don't move their game to the next level, we will watch the Wings, once again, exit from the first round, even as the games may be more entertaining. But do we have a better shot with Mrazek than Howard? Yep. But that's not the whole answer.

[Old School Hockey]

On April 14, 2016 at 9:57 AM, SpikeDDS said:

I'm not denying that.

 

But the other side, which you seem to have trouble acknowledging because you can't get past that, is look at the numbers for the season. When we were playing our BEST hockey was when Mrazek was saving above .950. But we're we steamrolling like TBL did as they approached the playoffs before Stankos went down? Not even close. We were good. They were better. Mrazek WAS Bishop. But our offense was inconsistent at best, dismal at worst. Our PP was DISGUSTING! It was almost like giving the other team's top lines 2 minutes of rest, because we weren't about to score! Mrazek being in goal didn't change that.

 

Now, TBL is without Stamkos. Without Stralman. That's the only reason we have a shot in this series, to be blunt. But if our guys don't finish when they have opportunities to finish, we lose, and it doesn't matter if Mrazek is in net or not. He may take the series deeper, perhaps. When Gustav Nyquist has a teed up shot in the middle of the slot, with Bishop out of position, and he doesn't even hit the net with the shot? I can argue that is why we lost just as strongly as Howard letting in that 2nd goal. They both tie the game. (What burns my butt about that is that all along, we have been buying that Nyke can't score in the playoffs because he needs time and space in order to score. Well...? And how much is he getting paid? 3 goals in the last 31 games?) I'm upset that Howard is getting paid what he is, just like you are. But I'm ALSO upset that we are paying Nyke and what do we have to show for it? And if history is any predictor, I don't expect that to change much. See my signature.

 

You see, you can focus on Howard, and what you are saying about Howard isn't necessarily wrong, it's just not the whole picture. You're seeing mostly what you want to see, and it's preventing you from seeing other. The reality is that our secondary scorers, and to a significant degree our primary scorers--where's Larkin? Where's Z? Last night, Pav missed a few times too, although he's been more consistent--are not doing their jobs. We are missing opportunities. Howard is ALSO not stopping them all. And then further you have a guy who has been reliable densively, Helm, have a bad game. Guess what, he's partly to blame too.

 

You are right in expressing frustration with Howard. I share it. I, like you, am anticipating softie. But Mrazek did NOT have his head right, even with multiple chances down the stretch. Howard didn't play well enough to take us into the playoffs. He played well enough to allow our guys to win IF they played their game. They didn't, and we almost ended the streak because of it, not because of Howard, but DESPITE him. I see that trend continuing. I liked the style of this game, but when I look at how their players responded to the opportunity vs. ours, the right team won, and not simply because of 1 soft goal. It was more than than. It wa more of the same thing we've been watching, just with a feistier game style.

 

Bottom line: If the players skating in front of our goalie don't move their game to the next level, we will watch the Wings, once again, exit from the first round, even as the games may be more entertaining. But do we have a better shot with Mrazek than Howard? Yep. But that's not the whole answer.

That HAS TO BE STOPPED!!!!