The returns of Barky and Weegar would not be enough to help the Cats beat the Pittsburgh Penguins Saturday night at home.
Though they missed out on two points, it felt like this was a better effort than we’ve seen the past couple games. No doubt they had probably caught Q’s wrath after that 7-2 blowout and that got their legs moving.
You hate to be “that guy” and blame physics, but if you take away those two bounces that led to goals, it’s a different game.
It’s easy to point to Ekblad on this one that hopped over his stick and landed perfectly on the blade of Letang who was fresh out of the box, but it felt more like incredibly lucky timing (and bad luck on #5’s account).
Blueger’s goal was another case of a bad bounce and fortuitous positioning. That puck pinballs perfectly in Weegar’s legs/feet and spits out right to Teddy ‘Johnny on-the-spot’ Blueger - props to him for going to the right area.
Looking at the Bright Side
I came down pretty hard on the Cats last blog. I think it was appropriate after that collapse against Vegas. If these guys are going to be the team everyone thought they were heading into this season, they need to be consistently in the win column.
Plain and simple.
Looking at Saturday with a glass-half-full perspective, rather than an overly critical one, I thought the Cats showed some good pace and that ability to battle back – even though they fell short. It was certainly an exciting last few minutes – especially those dying seconds when Dadanov received that breakaway pass from Yandle.
What’s more, Hoffman and Trocheck seem to be building their value up nicely.
We’re about two weeks away from the trade deadline and Tallon will have some decisions to make.
I can see the argument for keeping a guy like Hoffman since he seems to be firing on all cylinders right now. But…I’m on the side of trading him. If you can move him (and/or a package with him) to get legit help on defense, I hope that trigger is pulled.
Same goes for Trocheck. There’s been some tenacity and a more rounded game as of late from him. I could see teams looking for depth down the middle come playoff time with what he’s currently bringing and is capable of.
Of course there are a lot of moves that could be made (or that we’d like to see made) with this roster, but what would you guys do?
Let me ask you guys a couple things:
1. Do you think this current tandem of Bob and Monty is playoff caliber?
2. Who needs to be added on the backend?
3. Do you add try and add more firepower up front, or hope what you have starts to click more frequently?
I love thinking about this stuff because everyting is connected and it all has a trickle down effect. If you fix the defense, you might be able to get away with bob and Monty. If you don't, Bob and Monty might not be a duo that you can rely on, etc., etc...
I personally think the Cats are going to have to move a guy(s) that might be surprising to fans if they’re going to get significant change moving forward. A “band aid” player or two won't do the job. I think something of substantial talent needs to come in if they’re to go on a run and make get this thing figured out. The underlying threat of this team has been there for a while, but they’re missing something to unleash it.
I’ve read some interesting/crazy trade rumors out there, so I’m looking forward to seeing what happens in the lead up to, and on, the deadline.
The Bullies
Florida faces a good Flyers team tonight that currently sits at 30-18-7. They’re coming off a huge win after downing the Metropolitan-leading Washington Capitals by a score of 7-2. The same night saw captain Claude Giroux reach a milestone of 800 points.
Both the Cats and Flyers find themselves in similar positions of possibly needing to add in order to go on a run and get themselves into the playoffs.
Florida Panthers Blogger • 
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