Quote:
Originally Posted by JTech780
I would disagree, I think the forwards that you listed all threw a few more hits than they normally would have, but other than that they didn't play anywhere near playoff level hockey. Bennett might be the exception, and Gaudreau in game 5.
On defense, if we want to give a pass to the young guys, I get that, but Giordano, Brodie and to a lesser extent Hamonic were no where to be found.
Smith played great, I will agree with that.
So basically Smith and Bennett were the only players who were ready to take their games to required level.
I think the team as a whole was just lulled into a false sense of security and weren't ready to perform.
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BT's interview, "through NHL.com app", he basically says the same thing. Some players that normally play well, didn't and some players raised their level of game. He didn't feel we played our best and had some concern the team didn't leave everything on the ice.
I agree with your comment, thinking that we didn't peak, maybe because regular season expectations had already been met?; So for whatever reason "some players" were not prepared, or ready to make sacrifices to do whatever took to win. No sense of urgency, no shot blocking, no push back.
Was it coach, players, or expectations? I think Peters would do well to chat up with some coaches with previous playoff experience to see what he needs to do, while BT addresses's roster issues. I thought it was admirable that they gave Neal so much rope, however if they wanted to motivate him it would have been better to bench him sooner and let someone else learn and earn his spot.