I really thought it was a fascinating first two days of playoff hockey. What do y'all think about the play and games thus far?
Brutal loss for me as a Pens fan. I didn't think Montreal was going to roll over like a lot of people seemed to think but Carey Price had a phenomenal game, especially early for that onslaught in the first period. I saw a lot of fans griping about Matt Murray but I thought he played pretty well. Geno Malkin was non-existent and Conor Sheary had a rough, frustrating game. He's all speed and no control to his game. I don't think he belongs on the top line. John Marino had a hell of a game for a rookie defenseman, kind of an unheralded performance given the result. Jack Johnson continues to make head-scratching decisions. Credit to the Habs for sticking to their game plan. They put a lot of bodies on Crosby. The pundits were lauding the Pens' depth but honestly nobody played particularly well.
I tried to watch as many games as I could this weekend. Just finished Game 1 of the Canucks-Wild series and the Canucks looked plain bad. Minny hustled them all game. Kevin Fiala is who I wish Conor Sheary would model his game after. All of Vancouver's young guns had zero chemistry while the Wild had crisp passing and continuously crashed the zone.
That Kadri rebound with .01 seconds left was absolutely awesome.
Boston better quit pouting about the round robin and get into playoff mode.
Arizona was my pick in that series. I don't like Nashville. (Love the city, hate the team)
Columbus is a tough team, man. I still think Toronto wins the series but they're gonna give them fits.
I hate the Flames. No idea why, I just do. It carries over into NHL20 where my Be a Pro player has had multiple injuries from Flames players, including Matthew Tkachuk. Intended or accidental, he can suck it. The Jets were my pick to win the series but it probably won't happen without Scheifele and Laine.
I dislike both teams, but it always cool to see veterans play like veterans. Definitely curious to see how G2 plays out between the Oilers and Blackhawks.
Rangers-Hurricanes was a pick 'em for me, but I gave the edge to Carolina. Seems to be holding up so far.
Islanders-Panthers is one of the few games I wasn't able to watch much of but I thought the Islanders' defense would carry the series.