GDT: Montreal @ Buffalo, 700pm EDT, 10/05/2017

[SDS]

Didn't see the dominant game some here saw. Lots of ebb and flow for two periods with alot of time where both teams took turns pressing the play. And from the 10-12 minute mark on in the 3rd Montreal slowly strangled us.

I saw a pretty relentless forecheck and I did not see us get hemmed in our zone for long stretches. Lots of buzzing around the net with real offensive pressure.

[hockeyhound]

Well, if we are going to make that claim then we should be aware that he doesn't get that money until next year.

 

The point is somebody needs to score in a shootout, why not our most talented player.

 

I can't wait until next year to see it happen. ;)

Edited October 6, 2017 by hockeyhound

[Trettioåtta]

I don't care if no one is scoring. There are 23 guys who have to come up with 3 who can get it done. How the shooters do in the SO is completely irrelevant to Lehner. There's only one goalie on, he needs to be better.

 

So Lehner could make 10 saves in the shootout and let the 11th in but that would be his fault because there were still like another 9 skaters who could have scored if they had had their turn

[SwampD]

Lehner needs to get out of his own head on the shootouts. I don't think he could be any more tightly wound than he is about them.

[3putt]

If you are paying ROR $7.5 million per year...and he is not going to score you 30 goals...then he has to stop making mistakes.  He can't be just 'good', he has to be better than that.

Careful. That is heresy around here.

[Thorner]

Lets not Sour on our goalie to soon, we went 0-3 in the shootout. Its not all on him.

The difference is, Lehner has literally never made a SINGLE shootout save for us. I like the odds better that 2/3 of 23 guys can figure it out, than that 1/1 can. Lehner is the more pressing shootout issue.

 

If Lehner is our starter, he's going to find himself in a fair few shootouts, he needs to make saves sometimes.

 

Our shooters are failing at something that most players have low percentages at. Our goalie is mightily struggling at something almost all goalies succeed at: stopping more in the shootout than you let in.

Edited October 6, 2017 by Thorny

[Trettioåtta]

The point is somebody needs to score in a shootout, why not our most talented player.

 

I can't wait until next year to see it happen. ;)

 

Alex Ovechkin is crap in the shootout too, yet is probably one of the top 5 goal scorers of all time. Some guys skills don't translate well to it - Jack is clearly one of them. Meanwhile number 10 was at 52% and is a fourth liner

[hockeyhound]

Lehner needs to get out of his own head on the shootouts. I don't think he could be any more tightly wound than he is about them.

 

Forget Lehner, train the the back up goalie to come in cold for shoot outs. A Shootout Specialist, A Closer.

[Trettioåtta]

The difference is, Lehner has literally never made a SINGLE shootout save for us. I like the odds better than 2/3 of 23 guys can figure it out.

 

If Lehner is our starter, he's going to find himself in a fair few shootouts, he needs to make saves sometimes.

 

Our shooters are failing at something that most players have low percentages at. Our goalie is mightily struggling at something almost all goalies succeed at: stopping more in the shootout than you let in.

 

In fairness, I don't believe a single forward has scored in the shootout with Lehner in goal

[Weave]

I saw a pretty relentless forecheck and I did not see us get hemmed in our zone for long stretches. Lots of buzzing around the net with real offensive pressure.

We did have a strong forecheck. But we did have some times where Montreal kept us hemmed in. I guess it is relative. Relative to ever since the tank, we weren't hemmed in long, but we had plenty of shifts where Montreal dictated play. Most of them were either with the 4th line on the ice or were after a Pleckanec off nsive zone faceoff win.

[thewookie1]

Didn't see the dominant game some here saw. Lots of ebb and flow for two periods with alot of time where both teams took turns pressing the play. And from the 10-12 minute mark on in the 3rd Montreal slowly strangled us.

 

I'd say we dominated parts of the 2nd, problem was we failed to score the 5-3 chance we had.

 

Lehner is truly an enigma to me, how can he play so well then give up that SHG? The shootouts with him are a lost cause. We can't score either in shootouts, are they like in a competition to see who fails more?

 

Team looked night and day better than last year, Jack looked great at times. Although I think he got a little overzealous trying to get Pommers the hatty.

 

ROR had a rough first two periods, but seemed at least ok in the 3rd. Okposo carried that line for most of the game.

 

Jack to Pommer looks awesome. Kane is such a pain in the ###, he's everything I want in a power forward but seems incapable of using his brain in any non-shooting scenario.

 

Reinhart started slow but their line seemed to gel as time went on. Girgs looked good, like Nolan Girgs. 

 

Larsson is more of a pest on the wing, but I think he's more valuable as a center. The other two were fine as well.

 

Starting with an OTL stings but I guess its still a point in the bank. 

[Thorner]

In fairness, I don't believe a single forward has scored in the shootout with Lehner in goal

But a least a few have shown a limited ability to score. Lehner is mind boggling bad in shootouts. Our shooters aren't. They are certainly bad, but even the best league wide in the shootout miss more often than not.

 

We will be ok shooting because Josefson and Pominville will figure it out. They've shown aptitude in the past.

[Randall Flagg]

Careful. That is heresy around here.

Just because you've had some absurd opinions smacked down in the past doesn't mean we can't reasonably discuss that ROR wasn't good enough tonight. 

 

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Price has this insane presence in the net, I can feel it through the screen many miles away. I can only imagine what it felt like to watch prime Hasek. 

[Trettioåtta]

We did have a strong forecheck. But we did have some times where Montreal kept us hemmed in. I guess it is relative. Relative to ever since the tank, we weren't hemmed in long, but we had plenty of shifts where Montreal dictated play. Most of them were either with the 4th line on the ice or were after a Pleckanec off nsive zone faceoff win.

 

At best, this season we are probably a bubble playoff team. So occasionally being dominated is expected. The difference is this season we should be doing it to the other team as well and it was so refreshing seeing the D try and keep the play alive rather than skate back to the centre line once the puck was chipped in

[hockeyhound]

Alex Ovechkin is crap in the shootout too, yet is probably one of the top 5 goal scorers of all time. Some guys skills don't translate well to it - Jack is clearly one of them. Meanwhile number 10 was at 52% and is a fourth liner

 

O.k., then find 6 players that make it their mission to win shoot outs. Practice until they're freakin ninja shootout specialists and turn them loose.

 

I got feeling if we don't make it into the playoffs this year its going to because we can't win the shootout games.

Edited October 6, 2017 by hockeyhound

[thewookie1]

Just because you've had some absurd opinions smacked down in the past doesn't mean we can't reasonably discuss that ROR wasn't good enough tonight. 

 

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Price has this insane presence in the net, I can feel it through the screen many miles away. I can only imagine what it felt like to watch prime Hasek. 

 

 

Sort of, same presence just not as fun to watch. 

[Trettioåtta]

Agreed something seemed off with ROR tonight

[Weave]

Just because you've had some absurd opinions smacked down in the past doesn't mean we can't reasonably discuss that ROR wasn't good enough tonight.

 

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Price has this insane presence in the net, I can feel it through the screen many miles away. I can only imagine what it felt like to watch prime Hasek.

Get Pouliot off RORs wing. Problem solved.

[Thorner]

ROR and Okposo haven't showed up yet, preseason or otherwise. Needs to change.

 

And Pouliot wasn't with them all preseason.

Edited October 6, 2017 by Thorny

[Trettioåtta]

O.k., then find 6 players that make it their mission to win shoot outs. Practice until they're freakin ninja shootout specialists and turn them loose.

 

I got feeling if we don't make it into the playoffs this year its going to because we can't win the shootout games.

 

Oh yeah I'm all for training guys to be fantastic at it. I just don't think it has to be our best players, simply those who appear to be the best in the shootout. Some tactics in the shootout too - e.g. maybe if the first two simply shoot and get nothing the third should do something else

[bob_sauve28]

ROR and Okposo haven't showed up yet, preseason or otherwise. Needs to change.

Yup

[mjd1001]

The game was fun to watch.  It wasn't boring, but I still want more goals overall.

 

I thought Lehner played a decent game.  No matter how bad he looked, if 2 out of 3 shooters miss in a shootout, I'm OK with that from the goalies point of view...then it is on the Sabres shooters.

 

Antipin looked like he played nervous, not a great game...but I expect it might take him 5-10 games at least to get used to the NHL (maybe more). ROR needs to be better.  

 

If Bogo plays as good as he did in the preseason, it will be a big plus when they get him back.

[Weave]

And Pouliot wasn't with them all preseason.

Only think I saw wrong with OReilly and Okposo was the mess they were dragging around.

Edited October 6, 2017 by We've

[Randall Flagg]

Get Pouliot off RORs wing. Problem solved.

I'm on board, he was the most invisible forward tonight for me. Or useless, rather.

Also, I was on Bylsma about it so I'll bitch here - Stop playing Risto that much, Phil. He's not Shea Weber. 

Edited October 6, 2017 by Randall Flagg

[Thorner]

Only think I saw wrong with OReilly and Okposo was the mess they were dragging around.

That's fair, but again they didn't look good in the preseason either.

 

So, it's possible they just weren't trying in preseason, and then that Pouliot dragged them down this first RS game. But it's getting increasingly likely they are just slow out the gate.

 

Pouliot didn't cause ROR to give away that free goal.