WHERE IS THAT PANIC BUTTON?

Panic: a sudden overpowering fright         synonyms: consternation, dismay, alarm, dread, fear

Lets see. You’ve lost three in a row, and six of the last seven. You’re playing at home. You sit three points back of Anaheim for home ice in the opening round. You are playing against a team that has lost 40 games and is vying for the top pick in this summer’s draft due to its ineptitude. You have a 2-1 lead with three minutes to play. And you lose?! -- 4-2!

Yikes!

What has happened to our team?

They can’t protect leads. They don’t extend leads. They can’t (or don’t) score in the third period anymore. They aren’t getting the save they need with the game hanging in the balance. They have been almost void of any sustained synergy on their forward lines. Alarmingly they seem to have devolved into a team that defends backing in, and attacks by rimming pucks safely around the boards in the other team’s zone. And they only seem to be capable of focusing in fits and spurts.

Swagger? Evaporated.

Confidence? Eroded.

Poise? Sporadic.

Trust? Shakey.

And one other question, is it just a coincidence that they are getting trounced in 3rd periods and that is the only period they have four coaches behind the bench? (All are good, knowledgeable hockey men but that’s a lot of voices, ideas, instructing and reacting in a confined, pressure-packed environment. Ever heard of too many cooks in the kitchen?)

Whatever it is that has them wallowing in self-doubt and failure they better get back to playing for each other and playing to win or they’ll be fighting to hold down the 7th or 8th spot, not home ice.