I'm like....84% sure he was kidding.

I see your 84% and raise you 100% kidding.

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mechaphil

Don't make the mistake of thinking you're the only goalie on these boards. People are allowed to criticize Miller and understand the "struggle" of being a goalie.

I'm no Miller hater by any means and I loved bragging about him last season (except during the Olympics when he was robbing Canada blind). However, I do think there's room for improvement. I believe that if Buffalo is going to beat Philly, Miller needs to return to his Olympic form. If not, I see Philly in 6.

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I am, you know I am. I am Canadian.
#1 Hockey Nation.

Miller's Olympic form was an anomaly

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mechaphil

Do you see the dichotomy here?

Miller is, for some reason, EXPECTED to play at his Olympic level ALL THE TIME. Anything less, and people are screaming for Enroth to play.

People have said that they expect absolute excellence from Miller every time he's on the ice, no excuses. But other players on the team get a pass if they disappear for 10 game stretches.

There's also a distinct contradiction in other parts of the argument. People argue that goaltending 'isn't as important anymore, you don't need a great goalie', yet when they talk about Miller, he has to play better because 'he's playing the most important position'.

It's a completely bullshit thing to say. How can you say the position isn't important, but yet it is all in the same sentence?

Goalies are like the quarterback of a football team. Both positions take the most heat when the team plays poorly.

QFT

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mechaphil

I think it's just as unfair when that happens too. Aside from the NBA, team sports are just that. Teams. Sometimes it's obvious that a specific player should take blame for a loss, but it's a TEAM game.

I just can't stand the double standard of using certain arguments against one player on a team and ignoring those same arguments when analyzing other players.

Sure it's a team game, but some players have a larger impact on the outcome than others.

There's no way you can argue a member of the bottom D pair or a 4th line winger is equally important as the starting goalie.

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Hold my beer and watch this...

When a goalie lets in the losing goal because he was hung out to dry by his bottom D pair and fourth line winger who all blew their assignments, the goalie still gets the blame from most fans.

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mechaphil

Not ALL the time, just right now, when facing certain doom in the playoffs. That's kind of when super stars play their best, when the pressure and the spot light is the most intense. You'll have to forgive some fans of his for being spoiled or having lofty expectations but I mean come on, this is HIS time. Miller time if you prefer puns. And he's capable of stealing this series despite some big time defensive mishaps. But I'm cool with winning and losing with Miller in net, this isn't the time or the place for Enroth to make his playoffs debut.

Coming into this series it was all about Miller being better than the Flyers goalies. Boucher was better in Game 3. That can't happen again.

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"I love that you know how to do that." Cheryl/Carol/Crystal

"And I love that I have an erection that doesn't involve homeless people." Kreiger

All I'm saying is I think Philly has the better team and if Buffalo hopes to win, somebody needs to shut them down. That's why I said Miller needs to return to that unstoppable play. That being said I believe that players like Ennis, Stafford, Vanek, Pommers and Timmy need to play better too. Especially Vanek because we all know the beast he can become when he wants to win. I already posted what I think needs to happen if the sabres want to win in another thread but it was deleted because of the numerous post game threads.

So basically, I think other players need to be held accountable for their boot play. But even if they do, I still think Miller needs to be on his best game in order for them to win.

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I am, you know I am. I am Canadian.
#1 Hockey Nation.

I don't see how there's a double standard at all. You're asking supposedly outstanding players to play outstanding hockey on a consistent basis, and you're counting on this for the team's success. Bitching about Miller while giving Vanek a free pass would be a double standard.

The specific double standard I'm talking about:

Ryan Miller doesn't play to his career best numbers : People say he sucks and they should go with someone else.
Other players don't play to their career best numbers : People do not say they suck.

That's the point. Vanek is putting up good numbers, not his career best, and nobody is complaining about them. Miller is putting up good numbers, certainly not his career best, yet people are raging about him left and right.

I must have missed the rage. Miller has been fine so far. Game one is obvious, game two there was one, maybe two goals he coulda shoulda saved, but the team lost that game with a 2nd period mental meltdown. Game three Miller had one goal deflected past him by Weber, and two others where he was hung out to dry. The regular season doesn't matter anymore, but FWIW, the first half garbage was chock full of individual defensive lapses that led directly to goals...not Miller's fault.

Here and there were times Miller got lost outside the crease and gave up some poor goals, but his stats this season more reflect the early shoddy play in front of him than a lapse in his performance.

There wasn't any real 'rage' that precipitated this; just something I had been thinking about for a good chunk of the season, and a conversation with someone kinda brought it to the fore.

To take your NBA analogy (not that I know that much about the NBA), look at the Cleveland Cavaliers last year. When they lost in the playoffs, who got the blame? Oh, that's right, Lebron James got it, not the other 11 players on the team that I can't even list a single one of.

Furthermore, Stafford has gotten A TON of criticism on these boards in previous years when he was not playing up to expectations. Remember Helen Keller? He was criticized mercilessly when he played badly. This year, he's been better (cough<contractyear>cough), negative comments are down. He's the flavor of the month. I don't really see a ton of inconsistency in the way fans have reacted to those two particular players.

im not the only one. but i am the best. i bet.

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Vanek may be having his best all around season, which is probably why few are complaining. I'm sure that when he slumps again, he'll get crapped on, as he has so often in the past.