Currently Drinking: Maker’s Mark Kentucky Straight Bourbon Whisky
Each team has officially played one game in the 2012 playoffs. This article may seem premature after only one game each, but the playoffs afford no time to learn lessons slowly, and there was certainly no shortage of that to go around. In this writing, I will be looking at a key lesson learned by each of the sixteen playoff teams after one game (Thanks to the bizarre scheduling, some teams have already completed two games by the time this was published, I am trying my best to ignore all Game 2s and strictly analyze Game 1 efforts; I still don’t understand why the Devils/Panthers series started on its own, after everyone else, but I am not in charge of scheduling, and I’m sure there was a reason). With that being said, let’s have all sixteen teams sit through a lecture from Professor Chris, and they best be taking thorough notes.
Read them all after the jump
EAST:
#1) New York Rangers:
They need to play a full 60 minutes. Granted, very little can take away from what was a strong effort in game 1 to start the playoffs. The Rangers won a very convincing 4-2 game on home ice, effectively nullifying the “We won both games at MSG in the regular season so we can do it in the playoffs” argument (I told you so). What sticks out though is that the Rangers initially led 4-0. The Senators were able to draw it back to 4-2 before the clock ran out. This is a pet peeve of mine. Yes, they won. Yes, they completely outplayed the Senators, and the result almost completely masks the two Ottawa goals, but that same effort in a hypothetical Eastern Conference Finals against Boston or Pittsburgh? That game is likely in overtime, and I don’t like their chances. You can ask Pittsburgh about trying to sit on early leads against good teams. It never works, and it won’t start working in the 2012 playoffs.
#2) Boston Bruins:
You need to have a good powerplay to compete for the cup. Yes, Boston faithful, I am fully aware that your powerplay was complete garbage last spring and you managed to lift the cup with such superior even strength play that could only be the result of unified support from every Hockey God, Zeus, and Thor. But don’t play with fire (Zeus doesn’t care much for it…ask Prometheus). The odds of doing it two years in a row are slim to none, and so much work could be so much easier if the Bruins powerplay could operate at even average efficiency. This game would not have even sniffed at overtime, and the Capitals certainly gave the Ursids ample time on the powerplay.
#3) Florida Panthers:
Even if you are young and inexperienced, you cannot afford to act like it. Florida actually got a grasp of this idea somewhat, but in their 3-2 loss in Game 1, their inexperience truly stood out in a number of ways. A 12 year playoff drought, broken on home ice, and it was the last series to officially start. The crowd was downright electrifying. All logic would seem to point to a fast and furious Floridian flourish to open play, but the reality was anything but. The Panthers came out and played like kittens, and nothing was even remotely cute about it to their home fans. They gave up 3 goals on 26 shots in the first period. Just to emphasize that this is not a typo, 3 goals on 26 shots. It’s safe to say the pressure got to them. What really stood out though was their inability to get over some bad calls against them. Were they penalties? I didn’t feel they were, but you have to move on, kill the penalty and get your head in the game. The Panthers failed to do that, instead creating a parade to the sin bin, and losing all semblance of a defense. Granted, they recovered somewhat, almost mounting a comeback, but ultimately they were undone by their immaturity in the first period.
#4) Pittsburgh Penguins:
Offense wins games, but defense wins championships. Good Lord, I hate clichés, especially in hockey, but what else is there to say about the fate that befell the Antarctic Aves in game 1? I suppose the same lesson that applied to the Rangers (see above) can be applied to the Pens in a much more extreme manner, but I don’t think this was so much about the effort as it was about the defense as a whole. When Pittsburgh went on their hot streak at the end of the season, many observers pointed out that while the team was winning, they had a nasty habit of allowing 3-4 goals a game, which was largely masked by the frozen deluge of offense that propelled the winning streak. It was this very defense that stuck out as the culprit of the game one collapse, as the Pens did not play poorly in game 1, rather, the defensive coverage was not there. And while the Flyers are a team well known for their bullying, let us not forget that Philadelphia had the 3rd best offense in the league this year, and more importantly, let the Chillbirds not forget it either.
#5) Philadelphia Flyers:
The game starts when the puck drops. Flyers fans may feel jilted at the brevity of this entry, but I can’t think of too many ways on which to embellish my point. It’s fairly self-explanatory. They earned the win in game 1. They dominated play from the 2nd period until the final bulge of the twine in overtime, but it didn’t have to be that hard. They could have just played that way from the first faceoff and skated out of the igloo with nary a sweat on their brow.
#6) New Jersey Devils:
Keep the Pedal to the Metal. The Devils won 3-2, barely hanging on after staking themselves to a 3 goal lead courtesy of a 26 shot first period. They found themselves almost accidentally wandering into a Penguin trap and collapsing after a strong start. One major thing was different in this game versus the Pens/Flyers show. The Pens lost their lead because the Flyers played better. The Devils almost lost their lead because they stopped playing. They got lazy, and started taking shortcuts. Fortunately for them, their future Hall of Fame goaltender put in a vintage performance, and was able to extract his 100th win from what could have very easily been the second three goal collapse of the playoffs, and we aren’t even past game 1 of round 1 yet!
#7) Washington Capitals:
“You miss 100% of the shots you don’t take – Wayne Gretzky” – Michael Scott. The Capitals big question mark heading into their first round hunting trip was in their crease. Tomas Vokoun is hurt. Michael Neuvirth is hurt. The nod went to Braden Holtby. Knowing that they had a very inexperienced goaltender minding their net, the Capitals went out and put in a 17 shot performance, in an overtime game. Holtby was the best player on the ice that night, playing well beyond his experience. It was almost an injustice that he would make a rookie mistake on the overtime goal after being the only constant in the game for the Screaming Eagles. If the Capitals want to win, they have to give their goalie, be it Holtby, Neuvirth, Vokoun, Kolzig, Carey, or even Don Beaupre, much more offensive support in the form of goals. And while there is no guaranteed way to produce goals 100% of the time, hockey does offer one guarantee, but that has already been covered by The Great One.
#8) Ottawa Senators:
The regular season series means absolutely nothing come playoff time. Not to rub it in, but I said this in my prediction about this series. The Senators and their faithful had an air of overconfidence going into game 1 at MSG due to that very thing, and they learned a very harsh lesson. Those two wins at MSG during the season are a thing of the past. The only series that matters now is the one that they trail in.
WEST:
#1) Vancouver Canucks:
Playoff hockey can take some time to get used to. It is almost unfair to the Canucks. As I mentioned in my prediction for this series, the Kings have been playing playoff hockey for quite some time now, and that actually disadvantaged the Canucks going into game 1. The Kings were ready to play a game in which they would have to battle back, and they did. They gave up an early goal on a questionable call. They tied the game. They went into the last half of the third period tied, and got the go ahead goal, and was able to bear the 6 man attack and put one in the empty net. These are very important traits for a good playoff team to have. In game 1, the Kings had them, and the Canucks didn’t. I still think Vancouver is the better team, but their biggest challenge now is getting their game to a playoff level, and quickly.
#2) St. Louis Blues:
Rule #1- Cardio. Playoff overtime is awesome. You play five on five until someone scores, even if it takes all night (yes, even past four). This was a hard game to talk about. Both teams played well, but not exceptional. The one thing that stood out to me about the double overtime was that the Sharks slowly took over play, and by the time the goal was scored in the 5th period, the Blues just looked sluggish. On the seemingly harmless play that led to the goal, the Blues were standing still, not challenging San Jose’s possession on the boards. It looked like a powerplay, and Martin Havlat was able to waltz into the high slot and rip home the winner. At this stage, it’s too late to do any conditioning work, but maybe in the future, the Blues could do with some energy in long games, even if it is purely adrenaline.
#3) Phoenix Coyotes:
Don’t get frustrated; keep your cool. The Coyotes are young, and have very little playoff experience. Most teams in that situation would be completely broken if they let their far more seasoned opponent tie the game as late as the Blackhawks did, especially goalie Mike Smith, who had all of one playoff game to his résumé. Did Smith or the Desert Dogs panic? No, they went out, took the game to Chicago and got the winner (That Hanzal...he's so hot right now!). Can they keep their poise for a whole series, let alone a whole playoff run?
#4) Nashville Predators:
Stay disciplined. The Predators won 3-2. Both Detroit goals came on the powerplay. This solution should be pretty obvious. If your opponent is 2 for 8 on the powerplay, don’t take 8 penalties a game going forward. In particular, don’t shove your opponent’s head into the glass at the end of a game, retaliatory or not, especially when you have won. On the flip side, your own powerplay can’t be 0 for 6 if that’s the style of series you want to play. The Predators owned 5 on 5 play, and they should do what they can to keep it 5 on 5 for the remainder of the series.
#5) Detroit Red Wings:
You need to be able to generate offense 5 on 5. Largely an overlap with what’s written above, but you need to be able to play 5 on 5. Detroit scored two goals, both on the powerplay, and were completely outplayed from beginning to end in even strength situations. I suppose it doesn’t matter when your opponent stakes you 8 powerplay opportunities, but there is no guarantee that will happen down the road. Again, I don’t want any Winged Wheel fans to feel jilted at my lack of an explanation, but this one is pretty straightforward.
#6) Chicago Blackhawks:
Being cute on the breakout has no place in the playoffs. To be fair, this is a little extreme. The Blackhawks turned out a largely superb effort against the Dogs in game 1, but like I discussed in my predictions, the Coyotes countered the potent Chicago attack with a disciplined, tactical defense that rarely was caught out of position. These defenses, more than any other, cannot be beaten by skill alone, especially in the playoffs. On select rushes, the Blackhawks were guilty of being too cute on the attack, making too many low probability passes, making too many ill-advised dangles, and trying to make the highlight reel instead of the scoreboard. By the time they figured this out, there was less than a minute left in the third period. They were able to scrounge up an equalizer, but unfortunately lost in overtime. They need to maintain that last minute scrappiness and fight over more than a minute as the series moves forward.
#7) San Jose Sharks:
Take advantage of a clean slate. I talked about in my predictions how San Jose, on paper, was a favorite to contend for the Pacific Division, possibly even the Western Conference. They had one long slump during the season, and ended up recovering from the tailspin just in time to make the playoffs. In this case, a clean slate helps them. They are certainly better than their 7 seed would indicate, and all you have to do is get in to the playoffs. They managed to steal home ice advantage in game 1, so for all intents and purposes, they could have finished as the 2 seed. It doesn’t matter. Now is the time for them to play like the contender they were billed to be.
#8) Los Angeles Kings:
Your best players have to be your best players. This starts with Mike Richards. He was brought to LA at a steep price to provide leadership, grit, and playoff experience to a team that was on the cusp of becoming a true cup contender. He had a disappointing year, and so did the team (save for Jon Quick). They squeaked into the playoffs, despite having one of the worst offensive seasons in recent memory, thanks to a trade deadline move that reunited Richards with his buddy Jeff Carter from Philadelphia. Well, guess what? You never would have known any of that from their game one performance. Richards came through with a goal and two assists. Captain Dustin Brown chipped in with a goal. Jeff Carter had two assists and Anze Kopitar had an assist. Jon Quick was stellar as he has been all year. Most importantly though was the game winning goal from Dustin Penner, who has long been labeled as a perennial underachiever since his big years in Anaheim and Edmonton (Throwing out his back while attempting to eat pancakes didn’t help that image…true story). If the Kings had gotten this type of output from their star players from day one, the conference standings would have looked a lot different, and much like their Bay Area rivals, the Kings can benefit from the clean slate of playoff hockey.
That will be all for now, everyone. Don’t expect this to happen after every game, because it won’t, but I will certainly be updating between now and the time Lord Stanley of Preston’s Cup is raised triumphantly in the air.
No comments:
Post a Comment