The combustibility of the Pittsburgh Penguins is on full display so far in this Stanley Cup Final series. Last night’s 4-1 loss to the defending Stanley Cup champs puts the Nashville Predators in one deep 0-2 hole in this best-of-seven. I can describe the reason the Predators are in this hole using three little words…
Odd man rush.
What… you are surprised I didn’t say goaltender Pekka Rinne? He’s a part of it… but it is way too simplistic to lay it all at Rinne’s feet. He didn’t look comfortable between the pipes last night, fighting the puck and trying to do a little too much… that being said… The tying goal in the first period? Well… Rinne made save one, and save two… where was the help to not allow repeated whacks at the puck? The puck goes on it’s side and finds a tiny opening at the exact right time. Should he have had it? Yup, but he deserved better support. Then… four odd man rushes in 3:18 of the third period that led to three goals… defensive breakdown after defensive breakdown, most of the few giveaways Nashville had in the game all happened in that short timeframe. Where was the system and why did the team abandon it? Hmmm… there’s another three little words…
Trust the system.
Another HUGE reason this team is down 0-2. This Predators team has gotten in trouble every time they haven’t trusted their own system in this playoff run… Game Two against St. Louis, Game Four against Anaheim… last night against Pittsburgh. The Preds have been excellent when they play within themselves and keep to the system. Laviolette’s system and the team’s execution of it is why Nashville is in the Final… bad bounces happen, but they seem to get worse when the team is scrambling… oh… another three little words…
Bad puck luck.
Right now, this team just can’t seem to catch a break, two own goals and the fact that almost every bad bounce has ended up in the back of the net. However, I am a firm believer that over the course of a seven game series, the bounces even out. That puck luck swings in both directions and that it will swing back in Nashville’s favor, but those swings are driven. Driven by work and the system… and a little bit of faith.
Ahhh... faith.
It is such a hard thing to maintain when the chips are down, you watch it ebb and flow on social media among Pred Nation. But faith is an intangible, it is THE intangible. The intangible that helps a team rise up, a fan base rise up, a city rise up. It pushes, cajoles and allows excellence. It’s not catfish, it’s not superstitions, it’s not anything but the belief that you belong and can fight through to get to the other side together, as a team, a fan base and as a city.
Faith… it’s the thing that leads me to the most important three little words…
It ain’t over.
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Last night’s GBU…
The Good - Shout outs to Mike Fisher and PK Subban, both have been excellent in this series. The captain has been flying and Subban has been quietly playing some of the best defense of his career.
The Bad - Pekka Rinne posted an .840 save percentage last nigt… you know things aren’t going right when an .840 improves your save percentage for the series. I’m not addressing the goal situation today… I need to think more on it.
The Ugly - Three minutes and twenty-eight seconds of the third period. Frankly… it’s the difference between a 1-1 tie and an 0-2 hole. The Preds were well positioned going into the third period, tied at one on the road? You take that every time… but 3:28 later… the game was done.
Game three in Smashville is Saturday night at 7pm… get downtown early as Broadway will be closed off from 5th all the way down to the river… a stage will be set at 5th and Broadway for a concert from Alan Jackson that will get going at about 4:45pm. There will be multiple screens set up around Bridgestone Arena for viewing the game.
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Playoff Random Notes
- Another overflow crowd watched the game last night downtown, more screens were added and more streets closed off… and they still had to open Bridgestone Arena.
- Mike Fisher now has three points in two games of the Final.
- I rarely agree with Mike Milbury… but his observations about the officiating so far are dead on target… the players don’t know what is a penalty and what is not… blatant offenses being let go, soft calls being made. It’s not tilted to one side or the other… it has just been inconsistent.… These officials want to do a great job, there is no question about that in my mind, however, they have to get it together, no one wants the story of the series to be the guys in stripes.
- Lick your wounds today Smashville… we need everyone at 100% on Saturday
- The Stanley Cup Final – Game Three – Saturday night @ 7pm from Smashville, coverage on NBCSN. Radio on 102.5 the Game.
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