Let me be clear: it's not why the Bruins are down 3-1; that's because they are playing a better, deeper team. But the officiating in that series is crap. VERY inconsistent. I thought the goal should have been disallowed. Bennett pushed Coyle into Swayman, who then couldn't react to the basically open-net shot. You've got to give the goaltender the opportunity to make the save. We don't know what Coyle or Swayman would have done without the shove, that's immaterial. We got the shove, we have to call the shove.
Look, the Panthers are just playing smarter. I don't necessarily blame Montgomery; other than Maroon, Marchand and Coyle, you've got a young team many of whom are just finding their playoff legs. We just aren't deep enough.
We have Marchand. McAvoy. Coyle. Maybe Maroon, though he's not a skill player exactly. Pastrnak has been invisible.
They have Bennett, Tkachuck, Verhaeghe, Reinhart, Barkov, and Tarasenko. We have no one to square off against Barkov on any consistent basis. At the blue line they have Ekblad, Montour, and Forsling. No one on our D scores like Montour. Not even close. Bobs is vulnerable, the Panthers know that and they are stifling us; doesn't help that we almost always opt for the pass when we can shoot (that IS a Montgomery problem and one that we've been dealing with for two seasons now). Shot mentality!!!!
By the way, Darren Pang blows. It's so clear he's enamored by the Panthers - which is fine - and thinks they are the better team - which his true - but he doesn't have to be so open about it. He was describing Barkov last night and it sounded like he was describing one of those beefcake fireman calendars. Bobs made a save and it was as if Patrick Roy just stuffed Gretsky on an overtime penalty shot in game seven of the Stanley Cup finals. He was all up Bennett's ass with that goal, and only after a later break in the action, coming back from the TV time out did he allow that "he thought it should have been overturned". Look, I get I can't have my guys - Jack!! Brick, Billy, Razor and Sophia - but at least give us Sean "Say 'If the Bruins would have lost that game seven they would have been the only team in professional sports history to blow 3-1 leads in consecutive years' five times fast" McDonough and Ray Ferraro. At least Ferraro is more interested in the game itself than the teams he's calling.
Topic: NHL 2023-2024: Playoff Time. Hello Darkness..... (Read 28486 times)
