Comments on: The Better Team Won Last Night

By: Robert

Robert — Sun, 17 May 2009 01:13:41 +0000

Dear Ted i watched this series out of the love of hockey plus a bit of spying on who my home team might meet for the Cup .
Your team flashed me back to the days when us Red Wings fans just had Steve Y and a few stars good thing is with a few new peices your team will reach the finals .

Varlamov looks like he will become a great goalie for years to come but not trying to nitpick but you need a better backup goalie. Also you need to work with Alex man that guy is and i think he did hurt himself . By no mean have him stop hitting but teach him to pick his spots better and not put himself at such risk .

To the fans hats off to you the team must have felt a whole lot better having you stand behind them when things went so bad in game 7 . But understand that is the way game 7 is look back Wings 6 or 7 Avs 0 that could have happened to the Pens also

By: Mungo

Mungo — Sat, 16 May 2009 19:37:36 +0000

I was one of the fans cheering the Caps at the game’s end. But let’s be honest, it was humiliating - I could swallow the loss easier if the team had been competitive. Down 2 goals - well step up the pressure and score 2 ourselves, we know they could do it. My friend covered her eyes after the 4th goal and said “Make it stop!” We agreed that if the Caps didn’t score, we wouldn’t be able to show our faces at work the next day. But while I admire what the team did during the season, I can’t understand why they didn’t come to play in their biggest Game 7 ever, which was probably watched by more viewers than any Caps game in history. What a waste of an opportunity! There is no guarantee we’ll even get to playoffs next year, much less the semis.
So now I’ve gone from appreciation, to anger, to puzzlement. I’ve been a STH for over a decade and one of those in the stands cheering when we only won 28 games. I love my Caps and will cheer them on again, but I can only hope they learned a valuable lesson from Game 7; that there is no excuse to play like they did. That said, Let’s Go Caps!

By: hockeyfan66

hockeyfan66 — Sat, 16 May 2009 16:42:45 +0000

Ted,
After a hard faught series (and an interuption by your favorite artist Yanni), I certainly respect your comments. I’ve been a lifelong Pens’ fan, but I wonder what I’d be now - if my parents had stayed in Virginia in the early 70’s. While I probably yelled at the TV when they showed you - I now take those things back. You are a class act and I only hope someday I can be as successful as you. Peace to the hockey world and I hope you keep the pucks out of your net (unless you’re playing the Pens)!!!!!!
Thanks much for you’re kind words,
Duber

By: Don

Don — Sat, 16 May 2009 16:07:20 +0000

This was a fantastic series, but what I am tired of hearing is fans complaining about the refs. Referees in this league have been vastly inconsistent for as long as I can remember. Had it not been for Varly making nearly 40 saves per night, this series is won by the
Pens in five.
I have been watching hockey for 34 years, am a die hard Pens fan, and i don’t remember the last time we played such a scary team. Every time Ovy would touch the puck in the offensive zone, my stomach would turn. I just hope he will mature some, and stop with all the “NFL” like celebration business. In any case, Caps and Pens fans have a lot to look forward to with the amazing young talent that both teams have!

By: Jim

Jim — Sat, 16 May 2009 12:35:34 +0000

A bit too much self congratulation going on here. Yes, the team had a “good” season. But the fact remains that they almost lost to a clearly inferior team, Rangers, and blew a 2-0 lead to Pittsburgh. And enough about being a year or two behind Pittsburgh in rebuilding. CHICAGO is a year or two behind the Caps in rebuilding and look where they are. Let’s take off the rose colored glasses.

By: GTBill

GTBill — Sat, 16 May 2009 03:22:11 +0000

Ted,

Great season that came from years of hard work. Kudos to GMGM (who seems to take some flak, why I’m not sure). You have us on the right path. With any luck and some savvy moves we will make it all the way next year. GO CAPS! ROCK THE RED!!

By: jeff abraham

jeff abraham — Fri, 15 May 2009 21:00:33 +0000

Ted,
Great series and the foundation is being built for long term success. I love pure skill hockey and this series was exceptional. To the 2 classless morons who are whining about the officiating get a life. The Pens outworked us and we will learn from it but the series was clearly decided on the ice by the players.

By: stokes

stokes — Fri, 15 May 2009 19:51:39 +0000

Sapper: Are you kidding me? Take your red colored glasses off. The Caps PP sure was better than the Pens’, no doubt. But better than the Pens 5v5? Wrong. And while Fleury was not very sharp this round, he was sharp when he needed to be. Conversely, Varly was great in the first two games, the reason that the Caps won game 1, but after that, he was average. The Pens, for all their shots, really did not test him that much. They just wore him down.

It was a great series and I’d enjoy another in the years to come.

By: John

John — Fri, 15 May 2009 19:12:21 +0000

Thanks for the kind words Ted. Although I’m sure it pained you to say so(understandably…)

As a pens fan I hate to say it, but your team will be back, and will have the penguins hands more than full in future matchups.

By: PeterKMD

PeterKMD — Fri, 15 May 2009 18:49:02 +0000

Ted

As a season ticket holder, I’m crushed by the effort in Game 7, but proud of a major step forward this season. You deserve praise for the class of the organization, and your treatment of your fans. The game experience, the product on the ice, and the way you are developing it, are all first class, and you deserve our support. You have set the organization up as the antithesis of the Redskins and their owner, which is the biggest compliment you can get. Yes there are holes to fill, and playoff hockey exposes weaknesses. It was obvious that the way to attack the Caps was dump the puck in the corners and pressure the defensemen to turn it over. That was evident most of the season, it could be overcome in a open-skating regular season game, but in tighter playoff hockey, it was a killer. Some of those sins were overcome by exceptional goaltending, but you can rely on that and go far. An adjustment was not made to address the way teams attacked the Caps, and the coaching staff needs to study this, because the style of play in the playoffs will not be changing, we have to adapt. In hindsight, a player like Billy Guerin, who the Pens got for a 4th rounder, was a steal, and exactly the kind of grizzled, veteran playoff winner that could have been an huge help to the team on the ice, in the corners, and in the locker room. I have been a huge hockey fan for 40 years, and the team did not always play with the air of desperation for a full 60 minutes every playoff game. It’s tough to get to that level every night, but look at the remaining teams and you will see it. Maybe it’s an intangible that only comes with experience. I hope that’s the answer. Let’s hope the team uses this hurt to motivate and build a burning desire. Can’t wait to drop the puck next year.