[ComixZone]

Yikes, very ugly night for Ryan, Nordstrom and Lucic - and that matches the eye test. Mangiapane-Backlund-Ryan was ineffective, but Mangiapane-Backlund-Bennett looked great. Lucic-Bennett-Nordstrom was a complete disaster, and Lucic-Ryan-Nordstrom looked no better...but, that's a positive - I think tonight they sorted out line 1 and line 3, Tkachuk-Lindholm-Dube, and Mangiapane-Backlund-Bennett. You take those two lines and move forward...

...but what the hell do you do about Gaudreau and Monahan at 5 on 5 play. It looked like a direct continuation of last season, which was a direct continuation of post-All Star break 2019. They actively hurt the team at even strength. How do you fix this? We're nearing 2 calendar years of them being a liability and that isn't something this team can overcome.

Genuinely disappointed with the team from an emotional perspective. They still lack the ability to counter-punch when they get bopped on the nose. Where is the leadership on the ice?

Markstrom looked good. Tanev honestly surprised me a bit and I found some hope in the Hanifin-Tanev pairing. Does Valimaki strike anyone else as slow? Andersson looks like a raw elite talent - and I'm excited to see where he progresses to by the end of the season as the sky appears to be the limit for him.