Pens vs Sens, Round 2
Matt Bodenschatz | Pittsburgh Penguins
Apr 6, 08:33 PM | Hype this story!
With today’s loss, the Pittsburgh Penguins failed to clinch the Eastern Conference title and allowed the Philadelphia Flyers to climb the standings.
What they also did was secure a chance to provide a little payback to the Ottawa Senators, who beat them in five games during the first round of the playoffs last year.
The conclusion of the game also marked the end of the regular season in the Eastern Conference, thus finalizing the first round match-ups, which are as follows:
1 Montreal vs. 8 Boston
2 Pittsburgh vs. 7 Ottawa
3 Washington vs. 6 Philadelphia
4 New Jersey vs. 5 NY Rangers
As the teams fell into place, my predictions fell out of favor, as you can see below:
1 Pittsburgh vs. 8 Carolina
2 Montreal vs. 7 Boston
3 Washington vs. 6 Ottawa
4 New Jersey vs. 5 NY Rangers
The only series I predicted accurately was the Devils-Rangers series. I also was accurate in picking the Capitals to squeak into the third seed.
So, with these predictions behind me, another set are just ahead.
Faceoff Factor’s exclusive playoff coverage will begin Tuesday, as our team of writers predict the winners and publish previews of each series.
We also will have individual game previews for each game in the playoffs, as well as a daily-updated tracker to show series scores, schedules and more.
Please stick with Faceoff Factor for all of your playoff needs!
Comments
TIM
Apr 6, 11:36 PM
Thanks Matt! Kudos again on the Caps pick. You also correctly picked Bos vs Mon just a different seeding. I will be going to at least one of those games for fun. Let’s Go Pens
Matt Bodenschatz
Apr 6, 11:40 PM
Tim, we hope to hear your fan account from the game(s) you attend! Enjoy!
Michael
Apr 7, 12:52 AM
Just maybe .. “just maybe” .. Ottawa will play extra-desperate, like a cornered/wounded animal ..(!??) .. did anyone stop to think about this? Did the Penguins “brain trust” stop to consider this? Do people think Ottawa is going to lay down and try to conform to this ‘assumption’ everyone’s making?
This widespread assumption that Ottawa is “easier” than the Flyers (would have been) .. is a very questionable assumption .. injuries or no injuries.
The Penguins deliberately played to lose that game in Philadelphia .. and that is downright shameful. It showed a blatant lack of integrity. And it was absolutely gutless.
It showed that the Penguins are still afraid of the “almighty” Flyers. It showed that the Penguins are still intimidated by the mere thought of playing the Flyers in the playoffs. Yup .. now__that__is the kind of CHARACTER and DETERMINATION and CONFIDENCE I like to see out of my heroes as they go into the playoffs .. !! .. yessirrreeeeee !!!
Yeah, those are our Pens .. !
This was a cowardly, shameful TANK-JOB.
I find this to be very disturbing. And this puts a damper on the upcoming playoff games for me.
All the more reason for Therrien and staff to be replaced this offseason. This man is not only an idiot, he is lacking in professional integrity. And in case this tank-job came on orders from higher-up in the organization .. then it is even worse and even more disturbing.
Eric
Apr 7, 02:54 AM
You’re an idiot if you think that was a tank-job.
Ashley Gallant
Apr 7, 03:26 AM
I seriously doubt that anyone around here is thinking that a series with Ottawa will be a walk in the park. We’re not so stupid to think that we will shutout the Senators in 4 straight games and await our second round opponent.
DaBich
Apr 7, 08:37 AM
I thought I posted this earlier to Michael:
Michael: It seems all you do is complain and whine after a Pens game. Why do you bother watching them? My advice to you is to STOP WATCHING. Then you’ll be happy. Wait, could it be that you’re NEVER happy???
DaBich
Apr 7, 08:41 AM
Tom ~ I agree with you both on Whitney and on Letang. Whitney should SIT a few games. Letang has shown he’s a grade “A” defenseman. He’s capable of filling in anywhere.
Matt Bodenschatz
Apr 7, 09:43 AM
I’m not real sure what to say in response to all this. I suppose the most appropriate thing would be this: if the Penguins were tanking, don’t you think the score might have been a bit more extreme than 1-0 (excluding the empty netter)? Last time I checked, the Penguins have lost 27 games in regulation and the Flyers have won 42. Isn’t it possible that, maybe, just maybe, the Flyers actually won? No, can’t be. There’s no conspiracy in that!
Michael, if you’re so ashamed by the 2nd place team in the Eastern Conference and you continue to dislike every aspect of the team (except Ty Conklin), I strongly suggest finding another team to follow or another outlet to vent your outrageous theories. You’re here for one reason: to stir things up. And this will be the last time I ask you to stop. Present things in a respectable manner, or don’t present them at all.
DaBich
Apr 7, 10:04 AM
Want some cheese with that whine, Michael?
Michael
Apr 7, 02:01 PM
I’m here to express myself in a very honest, yet passionate .. way.
I’m a die-hard Penguins fan. I want to see them do their Very Best. I want to see them be put in positions so they CAN do their BEST. I want to see them Be Their Very Best. There’s lots of room for improvement, if you will.
Please try to tolerate my passion.
You see .. I hate seeing this team held-back by its coaching .. etc. I keep thinking of how awesome they could be if they had GOOD coaching.
I try to be brutally honest, because I really care .. and because I try to speak to the truth .. rather than being simply a cheerleader or a homer, or giving in to groupthink du jour.
And please allow me to use some hyperbole. That’s to be expected on a message board such as this one, is it not? I mean .. sports is emotional .. fans are emotional, right? I’m human. (Sorry).
Please allow free-speech, ok? I don’t wish anyone any harm. I’m not a bad guy.
I’m just an outspoken, passionate fan. I’m in your corner, folks. Really, I am.
{{By the way .. I give Fleury major kudos for his play since he came back. I am rather surprised by it, and I still think he will likely choke once the playoffs begin .. but I admit I could be wrong on this!!}}
DaBich
Apr 7, 02:36 PM
“By the way .. I give Fleury major kudos for his play since he came back. I am rather surprised by it, and I still think he will likely choke once the playoffs begin .. but I admit I could be wrong on this!!”
You’re in our corner?? Really? You could have fooled me! I think you’re full of baloney. And that all you want to do is stir up trouble. From now on, Dude, you’re on “ignore”.
Michael
Apr 7, 02:38 PM
Matt .. and Others ..
If I was going to ‘tank’ a game .. and I would NOT do it .. but__if__I was going to do such a shameful thing .. I would certainly try to make it “appear” that I wasn’t actually intending to throw the game. Surely you understand.
In other words .. I might instruct the goalie to play his usual game, for example, but I would tell the shooters to
really ease-up on the powerplay, etc. .. that sort of thing. And I would definitely scratch Crosby.
I think it should be obvious to anyone, really, that the Penguins didn’t try to win that game. And that__is tantamount__to throwing the game, is it not? Please .. let’s be honest about this, ok? It was obvious that a decision was made to “not try to win” that game .. because they bought-into the very questionable assumption that Ottawa would be “much easier” than the Flyers in these playoffs.
Where is the Penguins organization’s professional pride, confidence and character? Why aren’t they wanting to embrace the chance to beat their cross-state rivals in the playoffs? Why are they apparently looking for an “easy way out”? I think these questions are more than legitimate.
For whatever reason(s) .. there seems to be a lot of people who are “OK” with
this decision of the Penguins to not try to win that game. And I simply am saying that this is unprofessional and cowardly, and that this decision made by the leadership of this team .. blatantly lacks integrity. And so for expressing that .. I’m being personally attacked.
Michael
Apr 7, 02:58 PM
Well ..
I see that Dabich thinks I’m lying .. that I’m merely trying to “stir up trouble” .. and he announces that he’s putting me on “ignore”.
Wow. So that’s what I get for extending an olive branch .. (?) .. and for trying to explain my stance on things ..?
Wow. How sad.
I’m really not the enemy, folks .. seriously.
Matt Bodenschatz
Apr 7, 03:20 PM
Michael, I think all people are looking for is some objectivity. You see one side of every story and fail to look at the other side.
For example:
When Conklin was hot, you wanted absolutely nothing to do with the notion that he may just have been hot. Since he has cooled down, we never hear any unsolicited comments about Fleury’s solid play — and even when you do comment, you throw a back-handed slap at him, saying he’ll flop in the playoffs.
Every decision Therrien makes is horrible, including the decision to bench Crosby yesterday. You fail to realize that maybe, just maybe, Therrien’s idea was to keep a beat-up team healthy. Going all out in a (relatively) meaningless game and risking injury before the post-season is just plain stupid.
You never offer any positive insight on anything — ever. Every single comment you make is negative — even after huge wins. By reading your posts in a vaccuum, one certainly would put money on the Penguins being in the bottom five teams in the NHL. They’re in the top five in the league, and second in the conference. There is PLENTY of positive to sprinkle in with your disagreements.
People get sick of hearing nothing but the same schtick from the same person over and over. If it’s not calling out people for not demanding Conklin to be re-signed (how does that look now?), it’s harping on Fleury for not proving himself in the playoffs in the past (what has Conklin done during the playoffs?)...and if it’s not harping on Therrien for a poor power play (which is among the best in the league), it’s harping on Therrien for poor defensive coaching (despite the team being in or near the top 10 in goals-against).
It simply gets old. When you show absolutely no signs of getting ANY enjoyment out of the team, people just might start questioning your loyalty.
Michael
Apr 7, 04:13 PM
Matt ..
I have taken-on the role of the hard critic.
I have decided not to be a cheerleader nor a homer, nor a repeater of the groupthink du jour.
I’ve played a certain role here.
There are cheerleaders, homers, and repeaters of groupthink du jour on this board .. and they play those roles well.
And there are people who just make sort of ‘variable’ comments.
It’s all part of the scene.
Please do not type-cast me for all-times sake. You never know when I might make a positive comment .. it might happen .. in fact, it HAS happened a few times .. not often at all, no .. but it has happened a few times.
Maybe I’ll go into a phase where I start making “gushy-positive” comments .. !! You might be surprised. I ain’t all bad, man!
By the way .. I admitted that “I could be wrong” regarding Fleury “choking in the playoffs”. I’m VERY impressed with his play since he came back .. it has been really amazing. I hope I__am__wrong about Fleury choking in the playoffs.
But, Matt .. when you have a chance to win First Place in the Conference in the last regular season game .. you play to win. You__at least__play your “normal” game. The Penguins did not play their normal game, there. I’m not saying they should have played “balls to the walls” .. I’m just saying they should have played their normal game, and should have played to win. It was quite obvious, to anyone, that they weren’t really playing to win the game! And that’s why I’ve been so adamant about this.
If I was the Penguins’ head coach, I would be excited and motivated to play the Flyers in the playoffs .. I would__relish__the chance to beat them in the playoffs. I would have no fear of them. So I would have tried to win that last regular season game against them. But it was quite obvious that Therrien was actually__restraining__the team’s effort in that game .. and I find that to be inexcusable and lacking in professional integrity.
Ashley Gallant
Apr 7, 05:23 PM
Michael, you say that there are “cheerleaders, homers, and repeaters of groupthink du jour” here at FF, but I think you have it wrong. I think most of us are just try to keep a level head about things and remember that it’s an 82-game season with ups and downs.
We try to not get too down when something bad happens – though it does happen on occasion.
We try to not overreact, though I have been guilty of that once or twice this season.
I get the sense that there is something special about this team and I have a feeling that many Pens fans around here have that same feeling. Sure, they’re not perfect, but no team is – not even Stanley Cup teams.
I have no illusions about the playoffs. I know that it will be a rough two months, should they play that long. I also know that it will be very difficult to win those 16 games, but I think that we have a legitimate chance to do it.
Forgive me if I’m not a doom-and-gloom fan who criticizes the Pens at every turn. I don’t act as though the sky is falling every time the power play fails to score. I’ll leave that to Chicken Little.
I know the Pens are flawed (as all teams are), and they frustrate me at times, but I’d much rather take a deep breath and calm down instead of getting all worked up about a missed chance on the PP. It’s a lot better for the heart and the mind.
Eric
Apr 7, 07:38 PM
Thread of the year!!!
It would be one thing if Michael could successfully back up his statements. However, I feel he’s going with the “If you throw enough S**t up against a wall, some of it is bound to stick.”
I agree that his schtick of a “wannabe-martyr” for the cries of all that is “outside-of-the-box” are annoying.
Everyone can have their point, their say. But, at the same time – they have to be able to back it up. Something I’ve yet to buy into with most of Michael’s rationalizations.
DaBich
Apr 8, 09:55 AM
“Please do not type-cast me for all-times sake.” Isn’t that what YOU’VE done here, Michael? Look here: “There are cheerleaders, homers, and repeaters of groupthink du jour on this board .. and they play those roles well.”
You talk the talk but you don’t walk the walk.
Put up or shut up.
Nuff said.
Commenting is closed for this article.