Location: We shoulda let Uncle Billy finish the job. Joined: 01.29.2013
Sunday @ 9:57 AM ET
Ok, picks time. All are (GS5) certified. Call your bookie.
Leafs vs. Crapitals : Leafs
Lightning vs. Rangers : Lightning
Bonus : Willy Ny Goals Guy and JT both score. One will get 2 goals. Point and Cirelli score.
The Leafs shat the bed and lost a winnable game. To add insult to injury, they let the old wounded RuSSian bear drag his sack across their collective face.
JT did indeed score, but it didn't matter.
The Lightning won and both Point and Cirelli scored. So, if you are a Tampa guy and called your bookie, then you're looking pretty good right now. Otherwise, the feeling is Leafy and we keep plugging at it until the playoffs come.
At 92 games picked so far this season, my record is : 56 - 36 (.608%).
Not too shabby. But, the minute I started laying actual $$$ on these games, I would start losing my ass off. This is a muse for entertainment purposes only.
Location: We shoulda let Uncle Billy finish the job. Joined: 01.29.2013
Sunday @ 11:05 AM ET
Mangiapane's opening goal is one Murray wants back, but it was also a busted break-out - blind pass into the middle-center of the ice that was begging for a turnover. You can't solely blame Murray for that. Having said that, he got a good look at it, so he shoulda had it.
Second goal was a laser one-timer after the Craps ragged the Leafs around in their own end. Murray shoulders even less blame for this one.
Dowd's goal that restored the Craps lead as a third or fourth chance after the Leafs were hemmed in again. Seeing a pattern here?
Wilson's dagger was a tip-in on the PP. Not much Murray can do there either.
Murray did (mostly), what you want a backup or 3rd goalie to do. He played well enough to give the team a chance to win. His .871% was not good enough, but you can't just scapegoat him in this case.
Location: Whenever, wherever, ON Joined: 06.27.2013
Sunday @ 11:28 AM ET
Mangiapane's opening goal is one Murray wants back, but it was also a busted break-out - blind pass into the middle-center of the ice that was begging for a turnover. You can't solely blame Murray for that. Having said that, he got a good look at it, so he shoulda had it.
Second goal was a laser one-timer after the Craps ragged the Leafs around in their own end. Murray shoulders even less blame for this one.
Dowd's goal that restored the Craps lead as a third or fourth chance after the Leafs were hemmed in again. Seeing a pattern here?
Wilson's dagger was a tip-in on the PP. Not much Murray can do there either.
Murray did (mostly), what you want a backup or 3rd goalie to do. He played well enough to give the team a chance to win. His .871% was not good enough, but you can't just scapegoat him in this case. - GalacticStone
We agree. Turnovers in the neutral zone will happen - and it's not really an odd-man rush since Benoit has the only potential pass recipient - Murray simply has to play that shooter and he failed.
It's a decent shot, but not really a laser. It's a slow pass to a one-timer by Chychrun. On a pass that slow there's no excuse for the goalie to not be in position there and Murray moved too slowly across. This one is also on the goalie - NHL goalies make that save over 90% of the time. If the pass is faster the save percentage lowers, but most goalies are set for it when it's a soft setup like that.
Honestly there's little he could do about this, but he does massively overplay the potential shot on the left side of the ice. The D has to have that seam pass and don't get it, so we know were the fault lies - but as a goalie you honestly can't over commit like that. He put himself in a position where he simply couldn't move back across at all.
It was beating him all along. It deflected off of Wilson's pants, but Murray didn't see it and didn't do enough to battle to see it.
Now for the 2nd and 4th goals we, as fans, end up divided on these. Andersen was guilty of allowing these types of goals in his last couple of years here. Not battling hard enough through screens and not moving quickly enough side-to-side on slower one-timers. It turns out he was injured and it's just as likely that Murray is playing with some pain or some physical adjustments he's made (probably unconsciously) as he adapts to some of his post-surgical issues.
For me he could have - and if he wants to continue his career as an NHL goalie - he should have been better. Even if you get me to concede on the 4th goal (which was a good screen, I just didn't like his lack of battle), that's 2 goals he should have had and allowing 2 soft goals is going to lose you hockey games.
Mangiapane's opening goal is one Murray wants back, but it was also a busted break-out - blind pass into the middle-center of the ice that was begging for a turnover. You can't solely blame Murray for that. Having said that, he got a good look at it, so he shoulda had it.
Second goal was a laser one-timer after the Craps ragged the Leafs around in their own end. Murray shoulders even less blame for this one.
Dowd's goal that restored the Craps lead as a third or fourth chance after the Leafs were hemmed in again. Seeing a pattern here?
Wilson's dagger was a tip-in on the PP. Not much Murray can do there either.
Murray did (mostly), what you want a backup or 3rd goalie to do. He played well enough to give the team a chance to win. His .871% was not good enough, but you can't just scapegoat him in this case. - GalacticStone
At 5v5 "expected goals" were 3-2 Leafs but ended up 3-2 Capitals. Murray needs one more stop and Willie needs to bag one of those 4 or 5 High Danger chances he generated.
Our PP is still poop. In 4 minutes we generated 3 shots and 3 scoring chances. In just over a minute the Caps generated 4 shots and 5 scoring chances and were rewarded with a goal.
Most nights, two good teams going at it will end up 2-1, 2-2, or 3-2 at 5v5 play ..especially in the playoffs. The margins matter. Special teams has to stop letting this team down.
Mangiapane's opening goal is one Murray wants back, but it was also a busted break-out - blind pass into the middle-center of the ice that was begging for a turnover. You can't solely blame Murray for that. Having said that, he got a good look at it, so he shoulda had it.
Second goal was a laser one-timer after the Craps ragged the Leafs around in their own end. Murray shoulders even less blame for this one.
Dowd's goal that restored the Craps lead as a third or fourth chance after the Leafs were hemmed in again. Seeing a pattern here?
Wilson's dagger was a tip-in on the PP. Not much Murray can do there either.
Murray did (mostly), what you want a backup or 3rd goalie to do. He played well enough to give the team a chance to win. His .871% was not good enough, but you can't just scapegoat him in this case. - GalacticStone
I always really hate when people excuse goalies.
Its a game with roughly 30 shots on goal for each team, chances all game long and you have a goalie who's job it is to stop good chances to score all game long.
There will be giveaways, odd man rushes, breakaways and a goalie needs to find a way to give his team a chance to win.
Murray was flat out bad last night. There is no defending a game like that. If he keeps putting starts out like that he won't be in the NHL for much longer and probably never again.
Location: Henry Hudson's Fairchild 24 South Porcupine Joined: 04.03.2016
Sunday @ 11:57 AM ET
Cover song of the week, written by Blind Willie McTell, voted by Rolling Stone as #9 of the greatest guitar songs of all-time. (hard to argue this one) Duane Allman was brilliant.
