Ot: penguins
- Thread starter SoufOaklin4Life
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I thought Murray got lucky on a few shots last night that he allowed trickle through that his D bailed him out on. However he has been very steady the last two games and has provided a glimmer of hope that he may regain his Cup Form.
Great effort. Great win on the back 2 back after an emotional win against the Caps. What frightens me or concerns me at least is the 41 shots given up again, against a team that is not exactly an offensive juggernaut. And again, another game where Geno/Kessel for the most part weren't factors in the offensive end.
It bothers me when the stars aren't scoring, it also bothers me the number of shots they are giving up. That is not a good equation for long term success.
I think Geno will come around.
Murray is supposed to be in goal tonight.
You know, I’m sure there are a few teams out there that he would be a bargain for as a first line center but he’s 32 and hardly in his prime in terms of hockey age. I wouldn’t like it but stranger things have happened.
I fall into the he will come around crowd though. I think he’s Geno being Geno in that he’s playing lazy hockey due to the time of the year. We don’t see these stretches from Crosby because he’s so intrinsically motivated.
It's a big game tonight. Going into holiday break, the opportunity to establish some momentum and sustain it.
Another solid effort. Malkin had a few really good chances. Only a matter of time till he breaks out.
Murray with another very good game. I like the rotation of him and DeSmith. Both are playing. Well. Good time for the Pens to get their game together
Murray with another very good game. I like the rotation of him and DeSmith. Both are playing. Well. Good time for the Pens to get their game together
Back to back (or alternating starts) for Murray is encouraging.
Hope he can strung a bunch of games together...,would drastically improve our prospects
Yeah, Sid and Geno have "no movement clauses" which means you can't trade them, send them to the minors, nor put them on waivers without their permission ...... you can buyout or terminate their contract.
A few comments after the Pens 3-0 win over Carolina last night ......
- Crosby is leading/carrying this team ..... he is playing so well on offense, defense, and "special teams"..... our 1st line is hard to play against right now.
- Letang is having a really good year..... he is healthy and having a great comeback from last season so far.
- Penalty kill has been very good recently.
- Both goalies playing very well.
- I like the way Pettersson and Johnson are playing since they were teamed together ..... pretty solid.
- We've improved our defensive play but need to tighten it a little more to decrease the number of shots on goal against us .....better defensive play will help open our transition game also.
- Have to get Geno going and get a little more secondary scoring as the 1st line can't do it all.
- I'll make a separate post about a few of my thoughts on Murray's play since his return later ...... I know, who cares, but I'll post it anyway ..... LOL !
- Crosby is leading/carrying this team ..... he is playing so well on offense, defense, and "special teams"..... our 1st line is hard to play against right now.
- Letang is having a really good year..... he is healthy and having a great comeback from last season so far.
- Penalty kill has been very good recently.
- Both goalies playing very well.
- I like the way Pettersson and Johnson are playing since they were teamed together ..... pretty solid.
- We've improved our defensive play but need to tighten it a little more to decrease the number of shots on goal against us .....better defensive play will help open our transition game also.
- Have to get Geno going and get a little more secondary scoring as the 1st line can't do it all.
- I'll make a separate post about a few of my thoughts on Murray's play since his return later ...... I know, who cares, but I'll post it anyway ..... LOL !
It's the only Pens message board (other than possibly the hockeysfuture board) that I know of and there are posters on there that appear to know hockey much better than I do. Some good discussions on there.
I was there until RS and DB were canned and it seemed to slow down shortly after. You’re right some of those guys are very knowledgeable.
I used to post there, but they were all millennial fanboys/girls who could not take a joke or criticism (ie the Bylsma era)
I have never posted there, so I guess I qualify as a "lurker." Do visit up to a few times a week, depending on the time of year and what is going on with the Pens.
Yeah there were definitely some posters who were their own best friends.
First, MERRY CHRISTMAS, then .....
A few comments about Murray since his return ......
- Matt has played 3 games and obviously has played really well ..... GAA = 1.33, Save% = 96.4 in those 3 games ....... Murray has saved 108 of 112 shots on goal since his return ....... DeSmith has also played well in his last 3 games ..... GAA = 2.33 and Save% = 94.5.
- Murray has played better in each subsequent game ..... 3rd game was better then the 2nd which was better then the 1st game back.
- He made some GREAT saves in OT against the LAK's which gave us a chance to win the game which we ultimately did.
- Will need to see longer term consistency from him.
- Since his return Murray's goalie movement has been better (quicker and more fluid) which has led to better angles and positioning (he is a little farther out where he should be IMO, and as "recruits" would say he is making himself bigger which leads to less open net) ..... maybe he has been working on this and maybe it is better now that his injury has healed and he can move better.
- Murray has given up only 4 goals in the 3 games since his return which is outstanding and of the 4 goals he gave up, I thought he could have played 2 of them better which overall again is really good ....the 2 goals I thought he could have played better were the 3rd goal against the LAK's in his 1st game back which I discussed in another post early in this thread and the goal against the Caps which was the odd man break after Guentzel didn't get the puck in deep and ran into the linesman causing a turnover and odd man break against the Pens. Wilson of the Caps passed it across to a teammate which basically led to a breakaway ....... Murray made the most common mistake for a goalie on a breakaway and that is backing in too far too fast which leaves open net for the shooter which on this play led to a wrist shot from just inside the hash marks for the score ...... ideally in that situation, Murray should have gotten to the top of the crease and held his ground (not back in at all) which would have given him a great angle and position on the shooter for that shot at the hash marks ...... if he holds his ground at the top of the crease and doesn't back in, the position even becomes better for the goalie as the skater gets inside the hash marks closer to the goalie (less and less open net) ...... if the shooter doesn't shoot at the hash marks and gets closer to the goalie with less and less open net to shoot at, it forces the shooter to make the first move either going to the forehand or backhand but too close to double deke so as soon as the shooter makes the first move, the goalie just shoots to the corner of the crease to block or stuff the shot ...... the other option if the goalie is at the top of the crease and holds his ground, and the shooter doesn't shoot at the hash marks and is gliding not skating as the Cap player was doing, is to come out with a quick poke check which would have had a high chance of working on that play (Fleury often successfully used that technique in the above situation)...... backing in too far too fast led to more open net and a shot for a score from just inside the hash marks.
- Lastly, I'm SHOCKED that no one has mentioned Murray's much maligned glove hand as on the 112 shots and 4 goals Murray has given up since his return, he has given up ZERO goals over the glove hand (so far) ! .... ZERO ! ..... Playing better angles and positioning (out farther) has cut down the amount of open net above his glove hand that he has to defend which has helped some ..... looks like he has practiced with the glove hand in the month he had off and in some of the high glove shots he has faced, it looked to me like he changed his glove position some from prior..... in any event, it would be huge if the improved glove hand continues.
- It will be interesting to see who starts in the next game on 12/27/18 as it would be DeSmith's "turn" but Murray has been playing really well ..... Sullivan's call.
A few comments about Murray since his return ......
- Matt has played 3 games and obviously has played really well ..... GAA = 1.33, Save% = 96.4 in those 3 games ....... Murray has saved 108 of 112 shots on goal since his return ....... DeSmith has also played well in his last 3 games ..... GAA = 2.33 and Save% = 94.5.
- Murray has played better in each subsequent game ..... 3rd game was better then the 2nd which was better then the 1st game back.
- He made some GREAT saves in OT against the LAK's which gave us a chance to win the game which we ultimately did.
- Will need to see longer term consistency from him.
- Since his return Murray's goalie movement has been better (quicker and more fluid) which has led to better angles and positioning (he is a little farther out where he should be IMO, and as "recruits" would say he is making himself bigger which leads to less open net) ..... maybe he has been working on this and maybe it is better now that his injury has healed and he can move better.
- Murray has given up only 4 goals in the 3 games since his return which is outstanding and of the 4 goals he gave up, I thought he could have played 2 of them better which overall again is really good ....the 2 goals I thought he could have played better were the 3rd goal against the LAK's in his 1st game back which I discussed in another post early in this thread and the goal against the Caps which was the odd man break after Guentzel didn't get the puck in deep and ran into the linesman causing a turnover and odd man break against the Pens. Wilson of the Caps passed it across to a teammate which basically led to a breakaway ....... Murray made the most common mistake for a goalie on a breakaway and that is backing in too far too fast which leaves open net for the shooter which on this play led to a wrist shot from just inside the hash marks for the score ...... ideally in that situation, Murray should have gotten to the top of the crease and held his ground (not back in at all) which would have given him a great angle and position on the shooter for that shot at the hash marks ...... if he holds his ground at the top of the crease and doesn't back in, the position even becomes better for the goalie as the skater gets inside the hash marks closer to the goalie (less and less open net) ...... if the shooter doesn't shoot at the hash marks and gets closer to the goalie with less and less open net to shoot at, it forces the shooter to make the first move either going to the forehand or backhand but too close to double deke so as soon as the shooter makes the first move, the goalie just shoots to the corner of the crease to block or stuff the shot ...... the other option if the goalie is at the top of the crease and holds his ground, and the shooter doesn't shoot at the hash marks and is gliding not skating as the Cap player was doing, is to come out with a quick poke check which would have had a high chance of working on that play (Fleury often successfully used that technique in the above situation)...... backing in too far too fast led to more open net and a shot for a score from just inside the hash marks.
- Lastly, I'm SHOCKED that no one has mentioned Murray's much maligned glove hand as on the 112 shots and 4 goals Murray has given up since his return, he has given up ZERO goals over the glove hand (so far) ! .... ZERO ! ..... Playing better angles and positioning (out farther) has cut down the amount of open net above his glove hand that he has to defend which has helped some ..... looks like he has practiced with the glove hand in the month he had off and in some of the high glove shots he has faced, it looked to me like he changed his glove position some from prior..... in any event, it would be huge if the improved glove hand continues.
- It will be interesting to see who starts in the next game on 12/27/18 as it would be DeSmith's "turn" but Murray has been playing really well ..... Sullivan's call.
What concerns me though....is giving up 40 shots a game, they need .920plus save percentages to hold the other teams to 3 goals or less. Now yeah, they are doing this right now, but that is tough to rely on every night. They need to continue to focus on possessing the puck more, and better overall defense. AND.....more balanced scoring.
Im not as concerned about the number of shots but the quality of scoring chances. I general I suppose the higher overall number of shots the higher number of legit scoring chances. BUt in watching the canes game, while the shot number was high the number of legit scoring chances didnt seem to be that great.
I want to say there’s no way a team with the talent the Penguins have should miss the playoffs, but look at the Steelers.
I’m optimistic though, they’ve been playing better, it’s encouraging to see Murray get back up to speed, and hopefully Schultz can return at some point sooner rather than later (February?).
Just can’t be having bad slip ups as it gets later in the season. No more “it’s only November/December”.
I’m optimistic though, they’ve been playing better, it’s encouraging to see Murray get back up to speed, and hopefully Schultz can return at some point sooner rather than later (February?).
Just can’t be having bad slip ups as it gets later in the season. No more “it’s only November/December”.
I agree with both of you that we need to decrease the number of shots on goal against us and that the quality of shots matter (low vs medium vs high danger shots).
To that end, I think we need to decrease the number of odd man breaks against us and the number of our turnovers/giveaways in our end and the neutral zone which lead to transition offense and potentially higher scoring chances for the opposition ...... doing these things will decrease both the number and quality of shots on our goalies...... better puck possession and better puck pursuit by the Pens would also be a big help.
Agree, if Schultz can come back in February as projected and can get close to 100% by the playoffs, that would be big for the Pens.
The NHL trade deadline this season is 2/25/19 ..... depending upon the play of the team between now and then, Rutherford could be making a deal or two ....... in any event, you are right, it's time to improve and win, no excuses.
Pens beat the Red Wings 5-2 .......
Pens were terrible in the 1st period.
In the 2nd and 3rd periods, we turned it on and played well ..... better breakouts, fewer giveaways, better puck possession and puck pursuit, winning battles on the boards, defending better, etc.
Two power play goals tonight were big.
Kessel and Brassard with two goals each.
Crosby and Malkin without any goals but two assists each.
Murray with another solid/good performance ..... made 27 saves on 29 shots on goal ...... in the 4 games since he has returned to action, Murray has 135 saves on 141 shots on goal for a 0.957 save% and a GAA of 1.50 ..... the two goals that he gave up tonight included a somewhat bad angle shot from the low left circle where Murray was on the post, screened by a Red Wing, bent down to look around the screen and at the same time had a perfect shot go over his right shoulder (short side) and under the crossbar (I don't think he saw the shot at all) ...... the 2nd goal was on the breakaway when Geno turned the puck over at the blue line and the Red Wing skated in with speed and took a quick, hard wrist shot from the hash marks, Murray was in good position this time at the top of the crease but was beaten through the 5 hole ..... it was a high danger shot with a good chance of scoring.
In the 4 games since his return, Murray has yet to be beaten over the glove hand.
Next up, Pens vs Blues in St. Louis Saturday night.
Pens were terrible in the 1st period.
In the 2nd and 3rd periods, we turned it on and played well ..... better breakouts, fewer giveaways, better puck possession and puck pursuit, winning battles on the boards, defending better, etc.
Two power play goals tonight were big.
Kessel and Brassard with two goals each.
Crosby and Malkin without any goals but two assists each.
Murray with another solid/good performance ..... made 27 saves on 29 shots on goal ...... in the 4 games since he has returned to action, Murray has 135 saves on 141 shots on goal for a 0.957 save% and a GAA of 1.50 ..... the two goals that he gave up tonight included a somewhat bad angle shot from the low left circle where Murray was on the post, screened by a Red Wing, bent down to look around the screen and at the same time had a perfect shot go over his right shoulder (short side) and under the crossbar (I don't think he saw the shot at all) ...... the 2nd goal was on the breakaway when Geno turned the puck over at the blue line and the Red Wing skated in with speed and took a quick, hard wrist shot from the hash marks, Murray was in good position this time at the top of the crease but was beaten through the 5 hole ..... it was a high danger shot with a good chance of scoring.
In the 4 games since his return, Murray has yet to be beaten over the glove hand.
Next up, Pens vs Blues in St. Louis Saturday night.
Muzz looked pretty good.
Goalieman, just a question to you, should he make himself small like that to try and find the puck, or stand tall and maintain his angles and trust his positioning on the 1st goal? Not nitpicking, just wonder what is the correct way to play that.
On the whole, he looks really good, he looks like the Murray that won 2 cups.
Nice run right now, this is a good time to start turning it up.
Goalieman, just a question to you, should he make himself small like that to try and find the puck, or stand tall and maintain his angles and trust his positioning on the 1st goal? Not nitpicking, just wonder what is the correct way to play that.
On the whole, he looks really good, he looks like the Murray that won 2 cups.
Nice run right now, this is a good time to start turning it up.
anyone who thought they wouldn't is a fool.
87 ,71, and 30 know when to turn it on.
May need a trade late in the season for another center to take the place of Cullen or Brassard if he doesnt wake up soon. The return of Schultz will give Pens an extra D man to dangle....
