Hoo boy. That was a tough one.
As soon as they tied the game, I knew it was over. I was stunned when the game was tied, and pissed when it was over.
There's going to be a lot of finger pointing, and really, that's to be expected. But I don't think we can point to a specific mistake that was made that cost us the entire series. We could have (and, frankly, should have) won the series much longer ago. It's easy for a lot of us to say that the series was lost with 90 seconds to go, but if we had won game two or game four, we wouldn't be in this position.
Having said that, my thoughts on the series (and season) as a whole:
1. Brodeur let in two soft goals - the first and the last. But in between, he was pretty solid for most of the game - and even during the series. Yes, he looked horrible in game 6, but he was unbeatable in game 5. He may be getting old, and I know a lot of us aren't very happy with him, but he's still got the goods. He's going to be our goalie for the next few years and frankly, I'm fine with that. If we have to have the best goalie in the history of the game between the pipes, so be it.
2. We saw the emergence and maturation of our young players, particularly Parise and Zajac. Zajac especially improved from last season to this season, and I think they'll only get better.
3. Elias and Gionta look great together, but they desperately need someone to keep up with them. Zubrus has good physical presence, but he can't move the puck and skates as well as my dead grandmother's anus. I think switching his place with Rolston would have made a big difference. Zuber could punish people with Rupp and Clarkson; Rolston can make plays with Elias and Gionta.
4. Some people didn't like Sutter's reliance on Madden and Pandolfo, but boy, they looked great tonight. I just wish that Johnny had scored a goal in one of his million breakaways tonight. I think Pando's got a year or two left in him, but it's pretty obvious he's going to have to retire soon. I hope Shanny doesn't retire for one more season. The man's just too brilliant.
5. I'm frustrated with Havelid. I wanted him to be a great acquisition - and he had so much promise. And I really think he is as good as we thought he is when we first got him...but for whatever reason, he hasn't performed as sharply as needed. But on the other hand, we got to see the emergence of Andy Greene as a viable defenseman.
6. We're not going to get Bouwmeester. Let that idea die.
7. This season had SO much promise and I'm incredibly disappointed it had to end like this. But the Hurricanes are a tenacious team, and I have to give them that much respect.
8. If nothing else, the Rangers and the Flyers are out too.