Matt Clement
👤 SpeakerAppearances Over Time
Podcast Appearances
Listen, they're kind of an accidental playoff contender.
But the bar is raised.
The bar got raised during the regular season to the point where you better make the playoffs now or else it's a collapse.
And here's the real point.
is this is still a team largely composed of aging guys who want one more kick at the can.
That's the idea here.
This isn't a bunch of 20-somethings like the Penguins were in 2007 when they lost in Ottawa.
This is a bunch of old guys looking to win again.
They raised the bar during the season, which is why they kept the band together.
They didn't trade people.
Why did they keep the band together?
To get to the playoffs.
And if they don't, it's going to be somewhat of a collapse.
And I don't see how, you know, oh, you were still a surprise team.
You finished ninth in the East.
That's patronizing to them.
They raise the bar.
They force their own GM to keep them together.