Ultimately they did not deserve to make the playoffs, the lack of scoring, special teams, forwards too old to produce, or backcheck, inability to get games to overtime with the last two seasons very flawed teams that many past years would not have qualified or finished below Doug Weight's 2017 team with 94 points/12 games over.
The coaching was a problem. Sorokin faced fewer shots, but also had to play with virtually no breaks after Varlamov was supposed to be out for a day.
They did compete as we saw few clunkers, this team did not come out and mail in too many games, and beat Winnipeg, Florida, Washington, and did not look out of place vs top teams but found ways to lose.
It's time 53,44,21,18,20,32,17 go play on another team. 11 get's a pass playing hurt, and it's time to let Barzal be a center because all he's had is injury as a winger.
The drop in goals against did not let them get games to overtime as in the prior years which were hardly good seasons.
The area is unfit for an NHL team, which we have know since 1989, and win or lose does not work for the NHL without returning to Barclay's or a location not on the Queens border that's been a failed exeperiment built for Dolan, and his Oakview cronies.
Lamoriello double-downed on players he said were a mistake in signing three years ago, and gave us Mayfield, Engvall for awful term. Varlamov earned his contract but injury caught up with him, clearly Hogberg was not ready nor was anyone from a historically bad Bridgeport team with the least fan support in their history, and disgraceful marketing. The city of Bridgeport spent 30 million for renovations, and gave the teams it's first lease, the city should be furious with the product.
This is not the long ago past. Scott Malkin/owners gives our fans a max payroll every year whether you like him or not. It's not a cap floor franchise.
I made it very clear in the summer of 2021 this team was set up for long-term failure. 2021-22 reality came in while short-sighted fans were calling it a cup finals teams based on crawling into pandemic playoffs they never make in an 82 game season. The poor conference hid the issues the last two years (and put them in a race they had no business being in this season) but here we are now.
They deserved to miss the playoff by a mile as in 2021-22, and it's time for big changes. Roy deserves a pink slip despite the roster because he played 21-44 like Bossy-Trottier, and Dobson declined under him, as did Pelech/Pulock. Horvat was no star on this team. Lee improved but hardly won many games.
If Lamoriello's plan is another summer of total silence, fans are not going to purchase tickets (as we saw win or lose since 1989) they want a team actively selling the product, they cannot afford silence which is reason one Lou Lamoriello has to go. And if John Collins job is to sell a Fisherman loser culture only east of Queens give him back his SAPC money, and find someone else.
And I guarantee you this franchise with this payroll losses well north of fifty million a year, and far more. They have a lease with a 86.5 million out clause to get out of Belmont immediately, it's time to go back to the city/Barclay's and build on what was working. Go ask the Liberty.
