Expert analysis. Cancel the rest of the playoffs, and just give the Capitals the Stanley Cup. Advanced statistics say they should have it, scoreboard be darned!
- Kineada

I don't understand this level of delusion. Like, you do understand that in each game there are only a few outcomes right: team a plays well wins. team B plays will wins. Both teams play even, someone wins. One team plays better, loses.

Like, do you actually think that the team who wins always plays a better game? Do you deny that the best way to forcast a series is to look at the games that have been played? Do you deny that good analysis calls for going beyond the score?

Pens know how to win playoff games; Caps know how to blow/lose them. Dig all you want, make excuses, whatever. Holtby is pedestrian, at best, vs. the Pens BTW.

I don't understand this level of delusion. Like, you do understand that in each game there are only a few outcomes right: team a plays well wins. team B plays will wins. Both teams play even, someone wins. One team plays better, loses.

Like, do you actually think that the team who wins always plays a better game? Do you deny that the best way to forcast a series is to look at the games that have been played? Do you deny that good analysis calls for going beyond the score?
- james_tanner1

Yes I do because when all is said and done, you can give me a million reasons why one team is better but in the end all the matters is the scoreboard.

I don't understand this level of delusion. Like, you do understand that in each game there are only a few outcomes right: team a plays well wins. team B plays will wins. Both teams play even, someone wins. One team plays better, loses.

Like, do you actually think that the team who wins always plays a better game? Do you deny that the best way to forcast a series is to look at the games that have been played? Do you deny that good analysis calls for going beyond the score?
- james_tanner1

I know one thing, I don't understand a single word you said in the first paragraph. There are only two outcomes in a NHL hockey game, one team wins, one team loses. What happens in-between the opening face-off and the final buzzer isn't an outcome. It's how you reach the outcome.

You can discuss the road that led there all you want. You can cite statistic after statistic until you're blue in the face, but the only thing that matters is who has more goals at the end of the game. You can claim "it was the goalie" but guess what, the goalie is part of the team. So that means his team won. Despite all the fancy statistics showing otherwise.

Can you look at fancy statistics to "forcast" (or forecast) a series? Sure. But why are you forecasting the series in a recap of the first game? Why didn't you already do that? Discussing the end result of the game isn't forecasting the series.

Statistically the Penguins play worse without Letang in the lineup than without Crosby or Malkin.

Troof!

When the Caps are bounced out of the playoffs again, no one is going to be talking about how they should have won.

Yes I do because when all is said and done, you can give me a million reasons why one team is better but in the end all the matters is the scoreboard.
- ztg5003

That is an awful way to look at it. The Penguins got wrecked, and got lucky Flower stood on his head. As a Pens fan, I am legitimately worried for the rest of the series. I dunno how anyone can see otherwise. 41-15 EVS scoring chances. That's atrocious.

When the Caps are bounced out of the playoffs again, no one is going to be talking about how they should have won.
- Blackstrom2

Tanner will... but stop trying to reverse reverse jinx your team into winning, jerk

Tanner will... but stop trying to reverse reverse jinx your team into winning, jerk
- Guile

LOL..reverse jinx the Capitals? Like that (frank)ing matters. It's the Capitals.

LOL..reverse jinx the Capitals? Like that (frank)ing matters. It's the Capitals.
- Blackstrom2

AHAH! A triple reverse jinx attempt you slimy devil!

I don't understand this level of delusion. Like, you do understand that in each game there are only a few outcomes right: team a plays well wins. team B plays will wins. Both teams play even, someone wins. One team plays better, loses.

Like, do you actually think that the team who wins always plays a better game? Do you deny that the best way to forcast a series is to look at the games that have been played? Do you deny that good analysis calls for going beyond the score?
- james_tanner1

If you are using a sample size of ONE GAME to make that forecast, well, yeah. You sound like BB after Minny lost to St Louis.

And honestly, when you write a blog like this, you should expect this kind of reaction from Penguin fans. It's essentially HB clickbait.

If Caps really wanted to win the game they would have played the first period like the 3rd period. I was kind of stunned how lethargic they looked early in the game. You'd think a "team of destiny" would approach their biggest rival with a little more urgency.

So no... Luck wasn't the key ingredient to the Pens winning. Far from over obviously.

Tanner will... but stop trying to reverse reverse jinx your team into winning, jerk
- Guile

He's not even a Caps fan! hahaah he just writes about them.

When the Caps are bounced out of the playoffs again, no one is going to be talking about how they should have won.
- Blackstrom2

James is new here to this matchup and still well down the learning curve. Give him some time.

What's this "Deserves" crap? There's no deserves in pro-sports.

He's saying the team that was outplayed in the first, and fell behind 2-0 early in the second deserved to win because they spent the rest of the game playing high risk hockey and brought everyone and their mother into the other end of the ice, eventually tying it up but because of that high risk approach, turned the puck over that led the other team scoring the go ahead goal. That's deserves to win? Well, F me.

[b]If Caps really wanted to win the game they would have played the first period like the 3rd period. I was kind of stunned how lethargic they looked early in the game. You'd think a "team of destiny" would approach their biggest rival with a little more urgency.

So no... Luck wasn't the key ingredient to the Pens winning. Far from over obviously.
- madmike71

Especially considering the Pens were the team with a week long layoff.

What's this "Deserves" crap? There's no deserves in pro-sports.
- NJPensfan

Clint Eastwood agrees.

That is an awful way to look at it. The Penguins got wrecked, and got lucky Flower stood on his head. As a Pens fan, I am legitimately worried for the rest of the series. I dunno how anyone can see otherwise. 41-15 EVS scoring chances. That's atrocious.
- j.boyd919

Sure, 41-15 EVS scoring chances is terrible. But look at it this way, the Pens converted on 20% of chances verse the Caps less than 5% conversion rate. Amazing how I can make a stat that points to the opposite conclusion based on the same numbers you used. It doesn't matter if you carry the play all game if you can't cash in on the scoreboard. And playoff Capitals have a long history of coming up short

Clint Eastwood agrees.

- Emperor Filonius

Was going to post that image. lol Love that movie.

Coming from somebody who actually watches the sport, there is way more to hockey than analytics. Try watching the sport for once and instead of writing about "who should have won" based on this awesome chart you stole from twitter, you can realize that goalie is part of a hockey team and it just so happens the best player on the ice last night was flower. There is a reason you get ripped day in and day out about your terrible all over the place blogs, you're just as big a joke as Johnny toews making 10.5 a year. WATCH A GAME

Clint Eastwood agrees.

- Emperor Filonius

Love this. Anytime somebody uses the word deserves, I immediately think of this movie.

That is an awful way to look at it. The Penguins got wrecked, and got lucky Flower stood on his head. As a Pens fan, I am legitimately worried for the rest of the series. I dunno how anyone can see otherwise. 41-15 EVS scoring chances. That's atrocious.
- j.boyd919

This guy gets it! But be careful, if you keep being reasonable the folks with the Pens glasses on might turn on you!

Coming from somebody who actually watches the sport, there is way more to hockey than analytics. Try watching the sport for once and instead of writing about "who should have won" based on this awesome chart you stole from twitter, you can realize that goalie is part of a hockey team and it just so happens the best player on the ice last night was flower. There is a reason you get ripped day in and day out about your terrible all over the place blogs, you're just as big a joke as Johnny toews making 10.5 a year. WATCH A GAME
- TheKesselVessel

I'll add that aside from MAF being the best player overall last night, the score at one time was Sidney Crosby 2, The Washington Capitals 0.

This guy gets it! But be careful, if you keep being reasonable the folks with the Pens glasses on might turn on you!
- wilkobecks

Is this due to you looking at things with Senators glasses on? Of course not, I know.

Sure, 41-15 EVS scoring chances is terrible. But look at it this way, the Pens converted on 20% of chances verse the Caps less than 5% conversion rate. Amazing how I can make a stat that points to the opposite conclusion based on the same numbers you used. It doesn't matter if you carry the play all game if you can't cash in on the scoreboard. And playoff Capitals have a long history of coming up short
- ztg5003

The bad thing about this kind of poop is, if the Pens dominated the play and lost, every Pens fan would be like, "well, that's a tough break, but if they play like that the rest of the series, they're bound to win. They'll be in good shape. They're proven winners." BUT because the roles are reversed, Pens fans are so blind to just how bad the Pens played that they use terrible narratives like "the Caps don't know how to win" or "They just can't win in the playoffs." It's (frank)ing stupid home team bias. It's okay to be biased a little bit, but god damn sometimes people need to clean their homer goggles.

I'm a Pens fan, I want the Penguins to win, I want them to play better but I can see that they obviously are lucky to escape that game with a win, because they looked like dogpoop for over half the game.