2019 Stanley Cup Final - No Singing the Blues - Boston is Going Back to Backes

NYCSox

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Not to mention it landed right on O’Reilly’s stick. Any slight hesitation or change in location and Rask may have been able to stop it.

But it shows what happens when you shoot early and often. Hopefully the Bruins get that now.
 

kenneycb

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It was also a great shot by Petro. He hit that basically exactly where he wanted - where it was probably 60/40 chance of going in if Tuukka didn't play it and in a spot where he (1) couldn't control it and (2) was going to be a rebound to the middle. I'm sure Tuukka probably could've played it a little better but sometimes guys just hit their shots. And I think Petro did in this case.
 

DeadlySplitter

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I'm moderately concerned, but they've turned it around after a loss more often than not. they also will get two days of rest between games the rest of the way - their only losses this series have come with one day of rest. apropos of nothing, or are they just better with more rest now that we're in June?

I'm hesitant to fully correlate losing defensemen to the losses, too. we clawed our way to 2-2 and had a power play in the 3rd to seize control of the game, and then... nothing.
 

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I'm moderately concerned, but they've turned it around after a loss more often than not. they also will get two days of rest between games the rest of the way - their only losses this series have come with one day of rest. apropos of nothing, or are they just better with more rest now that we're in June?

I'm hesitant to fully correlate losing defensemen to the losses, too. we clawed our way to 2-2 and had a power play in the 3rd to seize control of the game, and then... nothing.
Fully no, but certainly partly. The guys had to play more minutes and that's going to wear them down as the game goes on.
 

Zososoxfan

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One other thought regarding the defensemen--in game 5 at home, it may make more sense to dress 7 D since they will be able to mix and match and get more matchups for the bottom guys. It also gives Cassidy a chance to see them more, so if they decide to go for 6 D in Game 6 he has a better idea of who he wants.
 

Haunted

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It was also a great shot by Petro. He hit that basically exactly where he wanted - where it was probably 60/40 chance of going in if Tuukka didn't play it and in a spot where he (1) couldn't control it and (2) was going to be a rebound to the middle. I'm sure Tuukka probably could've played it a little better but sometimes guys just hit their shots. And I think Petro did in this case.
I noticed that live too. It forced Tuukka to move away from the shooter, up high enough so that it would be less likely to be absorbed without a rebound, and more likely that any rebound goes to where the trailer was moving. Just a great play.
 

LordStanley88

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The Blues broke the Bruins mentally and physically in that 3rd period. They were shying away from contact like a badly beaten dog.

5 on 5, the story is the same. The Blues are just better. St Louis is outscoring the B’s 8-5. Without the benefit of 4-5 power plays, we saw what the Bruins offense is. This was the case in the regular season, so it shouldn’t be surprising now.

The Bruins have been beaten down, and are now down to their last remaining defensemen and will have to turn to some unconventional lineups going forward. The Blues have the advantage going forward, and I think will finish off the Bruins in Game 5.
 

RedOctober3829

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The Blues broke the Bruins mentally and physically in that 3rd period. They were shying away from contact like a badly beaten dog.

5 on 5, the story is the same. The Blues are just better. St Louis is outscoring the B’s 8-5. Without the benefit of 4-5 power plays, we saw what the Bruins offense is. This was the case in the regular season, so it shouldn’t be surprising now.

The Bruins have been beaten down, and are now down to their last remaining defensemen and will have to turn to some unconventional lineups going forward. The Blues have the advantage going forward, and I think will finish off the Bruins in Game 5.
Finish off the Bruins in Game 5? Bold strategy, but I don’t think the bruins will forfeit the rest of the series.
 

Jed Zeppelin

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The Blues broke the Bruins mentally and physically in that 3rd period. They were shying away from contact like a badly beaten dog.

5 on 5, the story is the same. The Blues are just better. St Louis is outscoring the B’s 8-5. Without the benefit of 4-5 power plays, we saw what the Bruins offense is. This was the case in the regular season, so it shouldn’t be surprising now.

The Bruins have been beaten down, and are now down to their last remaining defensemen and will have to turn to some unconventional lineups going forward. The Blues have the advantage going forward, and I think will finish off the Bruins in Game 5.
Take this to Felger and Mazz. Thanks in advance.
 

Boston Brawler

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Fauria stating on EEI that a source says Z has a broken jaw and is done for the remainder of the final.

Hopefully he’s wrong
 

Reardon's Beard

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Fauria stating on EEI that a source says Z has a broken jaw and is done for the remainder of the final.

Hopefully he’s wrong
From video review and subsequent observations this unfortunately makes the most sense.

Maybe they can win it for Z. I'll take any ounce of inspiration they can muster.
 

Mueller's Twin Grannies

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The Blues broke the Bruins mentally and physically in that 3rd period. They were shying away from contact like a badly beaten dog.

5 on 5, the story is the same. The Blues are just better. St Louis is outscoring the B’s 8-5. Without the benefit of 4-5 power plays, we saw what the Bruins offense is. This was the case in the regular season, so it shouldn’t be surprising now.

The Bruins have been beaten down, and are now down to their last remaining defensemen and will have to turn to some unconventional lineups going forward. The Blues have the advantage going forward, and I think will finish off the Bruins in Game 5.
So we're going to pretend like Game 1 didn't happen and that Game 2 wasn't the result of some lackadaisical and fluky plays? Has that dude Krug leveled even played again yet? The Bruins are getting beat up, it's true, but they're not dropping like flies. Grzylcek was boarded from behind be some toolbag who probably barely made the cut and wasn't a big loss for the Blues for one game (even if it was the lopsided 7-2 game; Sundqvist wasn't going to prevent 6 of those goals on his own) and Chara got the bad end of a slapshot to the face but hasn't even been officially ruled out for Game 5 yet (and, as others have said, could get wired and still go out there if he wanted to. Maybe he Bruins aren't playing as physically as they should but that might be part of the game plan since St. Louis was hailed as a big, physical, fast team coming in, a team that fed off contact and physical play because they could outmuscle most other teams. By not feeding into that plan of attack and focusing on skating and shooting, the Bruins are forcing the Blues to be a little more crafty and it's led to a pair of wins. The issue is that the Bruins aren't shooting often enough and maybe guilty of too many fancy passes to try to set up pretty goals. They are also letting the Blues get away with murder, though there's that old aphorism that the refs always see the retaliatory hit and not the one that started it, so they may be trying to draw penalties with little success. Maybe with three games left, two at home, they will start laying the smack down out there since they know they can beat Binnington and their only home loss in this series came largely because of a really bad decision by Marchand and a fluky bounce.

This was always going to be a physical series but most have predicted Bruins in 6 or 7 and it's lined up to play out exactly that way. I do get some shades of 2011 in this series but I really like their chances of winning two out of three with two in Boston, especially since they blew St. Louis out in Game 3 and were competitive throughout most of Game 4. I do think Cassidy needs to take a page out of Berube's book and start campaigning for embellishment calls and calls in general, but I'm not really worried yet. I'd also love to see Rask take a page out of Thimas's book and dump truck the next Blues player that gets too close to him in the crease, more if necessary, so they maybe have to start thinking twice of running him or even being in the same ZIP code.

Finish checks, shoot a ton of pucks at Binnington, and play smart. If they do those three things, they got this.
 
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durandal1707

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I fail to see how the Blues are "just better". They've eked out two close wins where the Bruins had multiple periods of playing with 5 defensemen and with goals that were more the result of poor play by Boston (Marchand's boneheaded backchecking in Game 2, terrible line change in Game 4).

And that's when the Blues have been carrying play. When the Bruins have carried play, it hasn't been close. You can try and discount special teams play as much as you like, but it's part of the game as well. And we've yet to see the difference in goaltending be a deciding factor yet. As anyone who was following the Bruins in 2014 can tell you, being the more physical and better even-strength team doesn't always translate into winning a seven game series.
 

DeadlySplitter

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LordStanley88, 9 posts... the SemperFidelis of hockey

fucking sucks about Z though if true. wasn't even a forecheck, it was a blocked shot deflection.
 

Myt1

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The Blues broke the Bruins mentally and physically in that 3rd period. They were shying away from contact like a badly beaten dog.

5 on 5, the story is the same. The Blues are just better. St Louis is outscoring the B’s 8-5. Without the benefit of 4-5 power plays, we saw what the Bruins offense is. This was the case in the regular season, so it shouldn’t be surprising now.

The Bruins have been beaten down, and are now down to their last remaining defensemen and will have to turn to some unconventional lineups going forward. The Blues have the advantage going forward, and I think will finish off the Bruins in Game 5.
What’s the rent on that bridge you’re living under?
 

jk333

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The Blues broke the Bruins mentally and physically in that 3rd period. They were shying away from contact like a badly beaten dog.

5 on 5, the story is the same. The Blues are just better. St Louis is outscoring the B’s 8-5. Without the benefit of 4-5 power plays, we saw what the Bruins offense is. This was the case in the regular season, so it shouldn’t be surprising now.

The Bruins have been beaten down, and are now down to their last remaining defensemen and will have to turn to some unconventional lineups going forward. The Blues have the advantage going forward, and I think will finish off the Bruins in Game 5.
Am I being trolled?

I agree with the first paragraph. The rest, no. Each team has dominated two games and Bruins retain home ice advantage.

You speak about 5v5 scoring and shots like they represent something. In four games they don’t.
 

jk333

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Isn’t it obvious?
I suppose so. And in that case, it’s pretty well done. I responded, as did a few others.

I do agree that the Blues took it to the Bruins in that third period even if the score was close. It was a lot like how the Bruins crushed the Blues in game 1 even though the score was close.
 

TheRealness

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I suppose so. And in that case, it’s pretty well done. I responded, as did a few others.

I do agree that the Blues took it to the Bruins in that third period even if the score was close. It was a lot like how the Bruins crushed the Blues in game 1 even though the score was close.
It's almost as if they were missing one of their top 4 defenseman, and had trouble adapting to the increase pressure only having 5 defenseman brings. It's almost as if this happened before as well, with similar results.

Must be a coincidence. Clearly the Blues will win the next two games by a combined score of 10-1.
 

Haunted

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I have an awful feeling that Z is out for the remainder. I'm torn on that.

Look, he's been awful. Can't clear the puck. Getting caught flat-footed way too often. Out of position. These are not lack-of-hustle failures, but ability failures.

However, next man up is either Kampfer or VaakanIcantspellit. Even this version of Chara is likely better than either.

Ugh. Please be ok Zdeno.
 

PedroSpecialK

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It's almost as if they were missing one of their top 4 defenseman, and had trouble adapting to the increase pressure only having 5 defenseman brings. It's almost as if this happened before as well, with similar results.

Must be a coincidence. Clearly the Blues will win the next two games by a combined score of 10-1.
Had to play over half of each of those games with 5 D as well.

Even with Chara out, this team sacks up and takes game 5. If Z and Grzelcyk are both out, I'd love to see Vaakanainen and Lauzon inserted, with Backes scratched in the case of 7 D. Johansson and/or Kuraly could be bumped up with more ice time going towards the top 9 - three games left max with 4 off days total, time to empty the tank
 

Jordu

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If Cassidy decides to go with seven D — which, at the moment, looks like a smart move — I think it could be Lauzon and Kampfer. Lauzon is a big kid and could play on the PK and match up against the bottom six. He can absorb and give hits. He’s not going to give you any offense and that’s fine.
 

FL4WL3SS

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I have an awful feeling that Z is out for the remainder. I'm torn on that.

Look, he's been awful. Can't clear the puck. Getting caught flat-footed way too often. Out of position. These are not lack-of-hustle failures, but ability failures.

However, next man up is either Kampfer or VaakanIcantspellit. Even this version of Chara is likely better than either.

Ugh. Please be ok Zdeno.
I'm also torn, he looks completely gassed in this series and now has the forearm gash and the broken jaw. Unfortunately, I think he should be done because I'm not sure he'll be useful if he comes back.

Next man up. I'm not hating having fresh legs, too bad it's probably Kampfer.
 

FL4WL3SS

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Had to play over half of each of those games with 5 D as well.

Even with Chara out, this team sacks up and takes game 5. If Z and Grzelcyk are both out, I'd love to see Vaakanainen and Lauzon inserted, with Backes scratched in the case of 7 D. Johansson and/or Kuraly could be bumped up with more ice time going towards the top 9 - three games left max with 4 off days total, time to empty the tank
Highly endorse this post.
 

Eddie Jurak

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I fail to see how the Blues are "just better".
There's a good reason why you fail to see it - it isn't true. And I say this as someone who was ready to main it in after game 2. At the very worst, the Bruins are on par with St Louis except for having better goaltending.
QUOTE="Jordu, post: 3425419, member: 281"]If Cassidy decides to go with seven D — which, at the moment, looks like a smart move — I think it could be Lauzon and Kampfer. Lauzon is a big kid and could play on the PK and match up against the bottom six. He can absorb and give hits. He’s not going to give you any offense and that’s fine.[/QUOTE]I think 7 D would be a bad move. For one thing, one of the 7 will end up getting like 3 shifts and not contributing, meanwhole, Cassidy will also have to rework his forward rotations to account for not having 4 full lines.

I liked whoever suggested giving Kuhlman a look.
 

RetractableRoof

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I think 7 D would be a bad move. For one thing, one of the 7 will end up getting like 3 shifts and not contributing, meanwhole, Cassidy will also have to rework his forward rotations to account for not having 4 full lines.

I liked whoever suggested giving Kuhlman a look.
I agree with your statement re: the effect of 7D on the forward rotations - but I'd be ok with that for a couple of reasons. 1) They've already been double shifting some guys to keep the Backes minutes down. Taking him out for an extra D just means they split about 10 more minutes a game. That's another 3-4 shifts for 3 different players over the last few games of the season - with the day off between games. 2) Because of the Pasta inconsistency (at least 5v5), Cassidy is already playing whack-a-mole with Pasta between the top 2 lines. All the injuries this year and young kids playing have led to a lot of combinations of players and lines - I don't think it works as much of a negative - though typically continuity is valued in the playoffs. If there is a negative, it might be on defensive responsibilities - but that is the gamble you run, and hope any mixing (and least with last change) gives the Blues enough pause that the pros outweigh the cons. 3) They might only need to do it for game 5 if Gryz is on the edge of coming back - though I certainly have no knowledge of that possibility. 4) Lastly, I think with last change the idea of putting another big D out there for 6 or 8 or 10 minutes a game who can put a thump on the Tarasenko (like they had Chara doing) is appealing.

Where I'm most concerned with the remainder of the series (beyond the obvious injuries) is the unacknowledged injuries that the players do know about. We all have our own beliefs about which players are "fine" in Stanley Cup Final context only. I'm worried that the totality of the injuries becoming too much mentally, and the team deflating - especially if Chara is done. Next man up is great, but there is a limit to it mentally. I think that is what happened in 2013, the injuries just kept stacking up until the balloon popped. They've shown a really solid ability to come back from these types of obstacles so far in the playoffs - I'm hoping my injury fears are proven unfounded.
 

LordStanley88

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How about benching Pastrnak instead of Backes or Acciari. -4 in the series, completely useless, probably playing hurt.
 

doc

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So you would bench the guy with the second highest point total on the team in the regular season, has 17 points in the playoffs, because of +/-?
 

Marciano490

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So, they’re due. I’m tired of this worryworting. We’re the better team. We will win the Stanley Cup.
 

CantKeepmedown

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Fauria also tweeted last night that he got some more info and all hope is not entirely lost. Of course, he won't say what it is until his terrible radio show today. Maybe he'll be good for game 6 or 7 (if it goes that far)?
 

joe dokes

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I'm also torn, he looks completely gassed in this series and now has the forearm gash and the broken jaw. Unfortunately, I think he should be done because I'm not sure he'll be useful if he comes back.
I agree on the going forward part. How effective can a guy with a broken jaw be? He may not have eaten in 2 days.
How bad has Chara really been? I understand that his errors are really obvious -- the bad clears, for example. But what is Cassidy seeing? Is he getting the big minutes because he's with McAvoy, who *has* to get the big minutes? Is he still a good penalty killer only because there's less ground to cover? My eyes say that even when he gets momentarily beaten with speed he still doesn't lose the play, and that overall, he remains an effective defenseman. Deep hockey nuance is not my thing, though. What do others think?
 

Myt1

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I agree on the going forward part. How effective can a guy with a broken jaw be? He may not have eaten in 2 days.
How bad has Chara really been? I understand that his errors are really obvious -- the bad clears, for example. But what is Cassidy seeing? Is he getting the big minutes because he's with McAvoy, who *has* to get the big minutes? Is he still a good penalty killer only because there's less ground to cover? My eyes say that even when he gets momentarily beaten with speed he still doesn't lose the play, and that overall, he remains an effective defenseman. Deep hockey nuance is not my thing, though. What do others think?
He’s been good, especially on the penalty kill. He’s a good defenseman. He’s an enormous loss.
 

kenneycb

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He's slow but so damn big and difficult to get through that people have to go around, and he's so damn big that it's difficult to do so AND get a good scoring chance. Plus he's a damn smart hockey player.
 

EL Jeffe

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I think Chara's size, physicality, and presence also account for something. I think he's the only defenseman that St. Louis hasn't taken a run at (because who's taking a run at Chara?). I thought Moore has played reasonably well when forced into action this postseason. Kampfer obviously had the big goal last series, and you could maybe get by with him for a game. But if this goes 7? I really hope one of Chara or Gryz are available (and preferably both).