To me it boils down to 3 things:
- The 3M line forgetting how to score completely counteracted improvements at 5v5 elsewhere in the lineup (top line, third line, third pair especially)
- The powerplay dropping from 10th to 25th means we no longer score enough goals to win without great goaltending
- Our OT/SO record dipped from practically unbeatable to 50/50
If any of those 3 things were the same as last year, we're sitting in a playoff spot today.