[Game Takes] Avalanche 3 Flames 2 (OT) Series 3-1

[Bingo]

Game Takes:
Avalanche 3 Flames 2 (OT)

Series - 3-1 Avalanche

- Flames better but still the second best team
- Backlund has a night mare night
- Smith is all world once again
- Valimaki? Star is born

[GullFoss]

This series is defined by the first line mismatch. Johnny and Mackinnon had 99 points each in regular season. Mackinnon has been a force in the series, putting the team on his back. Johnny has been a defensive liability and an anchor dragging the team down.

23-13-28 had 7 shots combined tonight.... Mackinnon and rantanen had 7 each, landeskog had 6. Basically triple.

[Samonadreau]

Agree with everything except that was a Penalty on Backs and Hanifin, even by tonight's standards

[atb]

and in high danger chances it was 59% Colorado with a 19-13 split.

Surprised the high danger were that close, felt like the Avs had double the Flames high danger chances, at least based on the types of saves Smith had to make.

Was really hoping for a statement game by the Flames. Series has been a big let down for the top players, especially Gaudreau and Monahan. They've just been completely outclassed by the Avs top players.

[Classic_Sniper]

Bill Peters is making Jared Bednar look like an absolute genius right now. Bednar has implemented a plan that has kept all the Flames lines and especially the 1st line in check while at the same time making all of his lines look like the Harlem Globetrotters. They’re skating through the neutral zone at the speed of light, they’re stickhandling in and around our entire team and just blasting 50 shots on goal a game.

This playoff series has been an absolute disaster. I don’t even know what’s going through Treliving’s mind right now as everything he built is falling apart in front of his face.


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[Slanter]

They can win three in a row. We can win three in a row.

[calgarywinning]

Let's just win the next game. Then explore options from there.

[Duffalufagus]

Originally Posted by calgarywinning

Let's just win the next game. Then explore options from there.

Agree. If they win game 5 I like their chances. But nothing I’ve seen makes me think they win that game.

[Duffalufagus]

Hanafin getting abused out there. Good learning experience.

[timbit]

Bingo, where do Monahan and Gaudreau fit in tonight on the fancy stats, compared to MacKinnon Landeskog etc. ? ie quality scoring chances for and against.

[Five-hole]

Easy to forget that this team was not even a favorite for a playoff position starting this season.

This is what it looks like when a young team faces expectations for the first time. Pundits were basically unanimous in picking the Flames to advance, but Colorado has more playoff experience and outside of a miserable middle 1/3rd of the season, due almost completely to goaltending, were a top 5 team.

Remember when people said Datsyuk and Zetterberg just weren’t built for playoff hockey in ‘04? That wasn’t their first kick at the can either, and that followed them around for years. They figured it out.

Too early to say Mony and Johnny will never be able to elevate their game, but that knock on them is clearly established at this point. Time for them to figure it out.

[Manhattanboy]

Originally Posted by timbit

Bingo, where do Monahan and Gaudreau fit in tonight on the fancy stats, compared to MacKinnon Landeskog etc. ? ie quality scoring chances for and against.

Monahan played tonight?

[Dajazz]

Sucks now, but a learning experience. Great teams are forged by adversity and heart breaking losses. This team has had too much fun.

And as much as a Monahan defender I’ve been, well, he needs to take a long hard look in the mirror this summer. What player does he wants to be? Johnny needs to ask himself the same question.

The talent is there.

I’ll point a bit of a finger to Peters. Trap the #### out of that neutral zone. Clog it like Godzilla would after a TexMex all you can eat marathon. Slow them down, they got so much speed coming in that they are almost first on the forecheck. Adapt Peters, adapt.

Oh, and tie Brodie and Jankowski to a rocket and fire them in to the sun. Brodie is redundant with Valimaki and Andersson.

I liked Neal tonight. He was bowling people over and playing physical.

[Strange Brew]

Right now Gaudreau looks like a player who had a great season while MacKinnon looks like a great player.

[Bleeding Red]

This is what it looks like when a young team faces expectations for the first time. Pundits were basically unanimous in picking the Flames to advance, but Colorado has more playoff experience and outside of a miserable middle 1/3rd of the season, due almost completely to goaltending, were a top 5 team.

The experience argument is BS.

COL has an average of 18 games of playoff experience (including this series). The Flames average is 17. Take away these last four games and 9 COL players have less than 10 PO games. (CGY has 10) COL hasn't even dressed their most experienced PO player - Brassard with 92 PO games - in the last two games. They have 2 guys with over 50 PO games. Flames have 1. COL has 1 player who has won a cup. So do the Flames.

Grubauer has 41 PO games - but how many of those as a spectator in the best seat in the house?

Experience in the playoffs is not the difference here.

[Erick Estrada]

Not going to spend a lot of time dissecting the players and coaches as there will be plenty of time to do that in the offseason. It's down to one game at a time now. The team has to put these two stinkers behind them and focus on winning the next game.

[InTheSlot]

Poor Mike Smith. Guy seemed to play really well last night, and the team didn't give him any help, and basically gave the game away in the final 10 minutes.

[kyuss275]

I thought Backlund had a great game going until the 3rd period penalty. Feel bad for him on how his game ended.

Who i dont feel bad for is Mony and Neal. Johnny hockey gets a lot of flack, but his game is nowhere as bad and useless as Monahans. Monahan has no extra gear for playoff hockey. He is playing like an average third line center. Neal has been as bad as he was durring the season. He has a muffin of a shot and is slow. Can't believe Neal was complaining to Peters in practice days ago. He is lucky that he is getting ice time. He should be in the pressbox.

Also we need more speed on this team. I can see why Tre was mad that the Zucker trade didnt go through.

[Bingo]

Originally Posted by timbit

Bingo, where do Monahan and Gaudreau fit in tonight on the fancy stats, compared to MacKinnon Landeskog etc. ? ie quality scoring chances for and against.

Monahan 44.74%, Gaudreau 40% in shot attempts.

But ...

They were both about 35% in scoring chance splits, and 30% and 23% respectively in high danger situations.

They got worked.

Lindholm was the worst player on the team in giving up high danger five on five chances against.

The 3M Line was all over 60%j in high danger splits. They did their job.

[kermitology]

This team doesn’t believe they can win. You could see that plain as day last night. They’re toast. They don’t even need to play game 5 if that’s the way they think.