DIBdaQUIB

have to be the worst team off the rush in the NHL. Seldom even generate a scoring chance off the odd man rush.

true hope that the future will be better. long-term view

28th ranked PK and in 4 PPs the Nucks can't score. Pathetic finish!

They need a skating coach! so slow.

I feel so much better...not! The future is an illusion we believe will happen. Neither you nor anyone else knows how it will unfold. What we do know, is what has happened in the past. Gillis has not shown the Balls to make meaningful deals that bring in impact players. The only reason this season isn't a complete write-off already is Santorelli, a player brought in to play in Utica! As for our prospects...yes we have a few decent ones but most if not all are projected to be 3rd or 4th liners and maybe Horvat as a 2nd line/Kesler type. If you want to believe in Gillis and that he will pull some miracle out of has a$$ go ahead. He's got s many core players signed with NTCs that are performing below their cap hit, I'm not convinced he will have the room you mention. Still...I have hope.

The Nucks are bound to get better as the fatigue becomes a factor. LOL! It could get a lot worse as the game goes on.

THis is where MG's "process" and vision have led the Nucks. Frome a team that intimidated with its offensive threat, to a team that can't keep pace with the top teams in the leageu. Only three years ago, the Nucks dictated pace and style of play. Now they're relegated to trying to hang on and slow the talented teams down. Chicago won the cup with speed and talent 5 +/- years ago and then had to do a mini-rebuild. Did they copy the Boston's and LA model? no, they got faster and more talented. Gillis decided instead to get bigger, slower an pluggier!! process

This game certainly showcases speed and talent. Too bad its all on the Hawks team. The speed that Chicago moves at and their ability to make plays at speed is totally lacking on the Nucks team. Unless our guys can find a way to slow things down and clutter up the ice (play scrum hockey) they can't compete with teams like Chicago. Very sad!!

As much as they are still a big part of this team, I agree they have fallen off and that they are not the force they were a couple years ago. Hank has weathered better than Dan, who is certainly not worth his cap hit this year or last. When you see opposing coaches recognize that the Sedins are less a danger than a line with a $600K/yr Santorelli on it, you know the twins have dropped off. Also Santo at +14 to Hanks +5 is a telling stat. What I observe are two slow skating very talented players who's style has been scouted at length and every team now knows how to defend against. Their lack of speed and ability to beat players one-on-one makes them predictable. They are still effective on the PP because of the extra room to maneuver but 5 on 5, they are not nearly as effective. If they can only be effective with one or two players after all the combinations tried, who is the real performer...Burrows or the twins?

The problem with the Sedins is the Sedins. Everyone always blaming their lack of generating pressure/chances on whoever is on their line. They're making $7M each!! Hank doesn't even generate a shot on net most nights and a big night for Daniel is 2 shots! They look slower and less "connected" this year than last which was worse than the year before. Perhaps the wear and tear of being moderate sized, slow skaters who work along the boards has caught up to them but they are the architect of their own struggles.

5 shots in the third...talk about mailing it in!! The mental fragility of this core remains a major concern. Down 4-1 early in the third, I wonder how Dustin Brown would be setting an example?! Where's our leader(s)?

Those contracts were a reward for past performance but not an indicator of what the Sedins will bring during the term. The twins appear to be declining quite rapidly and their contracts could end up being as much or more of a problem for MG as Lu's was, maybe more. HOw do you get anyone to take $14M and who would take one without the other? Would anyone take Daniel at $7M?

Here's' my take... - our top players can't score - the shootout is simply a confirmation of the lack of true goal scoring forwards on this team - the team continues to have mental lapses resulting in mini-breakdowns - Lu wasn't there tonight to bail anyone out - Lehtonen made a number of saves he probably shouldn't, while Lu let in some he should have had. Lehtontn sv% .957, Lu .789

They have never addressed the lack of a legitimate top 6 sniper and have zero ability to ever score their way out of trouble. The Sedins are a shadow of what they were a couple years ago so secondary scoring is now a requirement every game to have a chance to win. When Lu has an off game (tonight) it's a forgone conclusion that they will roll over. The supporting cast are pretty good but it's the core that is consistently letting the team down.

31 starts in 37 games...at 34, I would be surprised if he, or any goalie could stay "fresh". You can break a horse if you ride it too hard...Having the Sedins play the most minutes in the league for the first 30 games seems to have left them slightly broken as well. The knock on Torts' style?

..barn door

Lu is 34 and has been playing a lot of hockey. Torts needs to pace him. With Lack playing as well as he has, there is no reason to ride Lu this much. WIth the Olympics (if Lu goes)all the drama from the summer etc, Lu needs to be managed in order to be fresh in the spring. I hope Eddie gets the start tomorrow. Lu's looking slow and a little "off".

The strap of his shot-blocking protector broke and he stepped on it. He was out on the PP after that and was moving fine.

im afraid so. Lu has to make that after his team has been dominating and only Lehtonen has kept them from tying the game.

This has a familiar ring to it!!

Begs the question, "who is making who better?" Pretty sure you could play your poodle with Crosby and it would be a 30 goal scorer. Sedins too "finicky" to be successful with other than a couple players.

Bad case of "newcontractitis". Unless they can up their performance, $7M each will have been an overpayment.

It wasn't just the Nucks. How about how in game 7 between Boston and Tampa suddenly, the refs stop calling penalties against the Bruins who were getting killed by Tampa's PP? Boston's owner is president of the NHL Board...Campbell's son played for the Bruins (and he had been accused of manipulating refs in this regard before). The suspension on Rome in 2011 was a travesty. A hit that until that point was never even a penalty and suddenly justifies a suspension for the balance of the playoffs? Right! I don't think he league is necessarily "fixed" but I do believe various aspects of the game are manipulated to the advantage of certain teams to achieve the outcome the league desires.

Yes, I did see it, in real time and slow mo. The reason they brought in hybrid icing was to eliminate this kind of play. Racing to the boards at high speed with a player on your back, attempting then to stop is a fine balancing act. A slight touch to the skates or a tug (as in this case) can result in an off-balance situation with the outcome being what we saw with Stanton. Was it as deliberate as an elbow to the head, no, but it was a dangerous play that the league has tried to eliminate and Konopka knew exactly what he was doing.

Hope the boys give it a solid 60 tonight. Bummer about Stanton - that kind of play by a know "goon" is what the NHL needs to focus on getting out of the game but of course, it never even got look by Shanahan. Disappointed that Lack isn't getting more starts. Lu's played well but he is 34 and with the Olympics thrown in, it is an emotionally and physically demanding year for him. Torts should be managing his ice-time better IMHO. It's not like Lack hasn't been playing well enough to deserve starts. This strategy may come back to bite them in the spring.