When rip thunderdome, defender for the tampa bay barracuda in the eastern conference of the simulation hockey league, is in the middle of a playoff run, it is pretty easy to not let the pressure get in the way of his performance on the ice. To be honest, rip thunderdome feels like there is not really pressure there in the first place. Not many people around the league have much faith in the tampa bay barracuda. Despite winning the east in the regular season, many people picked teams like philly and atlanta over them. They were often predicted to come in 4th in the atlantic. Knowing this, rip thunderdome is able to go out on the ice without worrying about high expectations weighing him down. The league does not expect him and his team to succeed, so they are playing with house money. Time to go out and prove people wrong.
The classic playoff moves that rouse the crowd up are what Murdock lives for. 1st shift, set the tone, lay the body. The first big hit in a playoff game carries a different weight than a regular season hit. Similarly, a good blocked shot at any strength, but especially on the penalty kill, riles everyone up. It's those kinds of plays that are condusive to winning and exciting for the fans that Murdock wants to commit to--none of that "I'm gonna do everything myself," get outside of your game stuff. To quote High School Musical, you can't "be afraid to shoot the outside J, (uh) get your head in the game." Don't extend beyond your means. Just live life.
The other exciting play that happens in playoffs is one Murdock doesn't really want to be associated with. It's when the 3rd line grinder, 3rd pairing fighting d-man scores a big goal. Think Brooks Orpik or any similar stay at home guy coming around and scoring. Those guys scoring is what legends are made of. Naturally Murdock doesn't want to be considered a "surprise" contributor to a cup victory but at the same time who doesn't want to be remembered in the history books forever?
Bonk Registered
S25, S37 Challenge Cup Champion and a pretty pretty princess
Hugh is not much of show boater, he likes things simple as Big always said act like you have been there before. Granted playoff time aways makes things more exciting but Hugh never like to make spectacle of himself. So, Hugh generally does not try to impress the crowd with silly antics. Hugh much prefers his game play to impress the crowd. His view is if I have a hat trick, that will impress the crowd, much more than a silly chant or cheer. Manius Believes action are much more important than words as words can be hollow and meaningless. But scoring goals and having assists are real, shot blocks and hits are real. Something that can give you physical scars they are real. Therefore, Hugh does not run his mouth or act like some type of showboating clown. I the words of Autin Powers, “That is just not my bag, Baby”.
Former Players: Yoshimitsu McCloud (LW, #64) - Won a Four Star Cup once, knew ninjutsu, picture editors hated him, never tried free agency
Anton Harrier (LW, #90) - Won WJC gold, liked skateboarding a lot, went to the finals with Manhattan, kept his seat glued in LR
In the playoffs, Marian relies on mental toughness and strong determination to handle high-pressure situations when facing the risk of losing. Recognizing the limited likelihood of success motivates a determined attitude towards work and a strong dedication to improving his abilities and tactics. He has a positive mindset, concentrating on the steps taken rather than the end result, and view setbacks as chances to grow and better himself moving forward.
If marian loses in the playoffs, he shows grace and good sportsmanship. He accepts defeat, think about how he played, and use it as inspiration to return even better in the next season. Despite feeling let down, he continue to have a mindset focused on growth and are determined not to allow obstacles to shape his career.
Following the struggles during the playoffs, marian now focuses on recuperating and reenergizing himself, both mentally and physically. Participating in hobbies he loves outside of hockey allows them to relax and see things from a new angle. During the offseason he uses the time to refresh and center themselves by being with loved ones, enjoying hobbies, or giving back through charitable activities.
When it comes to golfing after the playoffs, my team sees it as a way to strengthen friendships and unity among players. The golf outing creates a chance for team members to relax, bond, and form relationships outside of the ice arena. It offers a valuable chance for players to think about the season, acknowledge accomplishments, and plan for the future while participating in a different sport as a group.
Aksel loves the playoffs, but he's gotten used to not playing in them. It's just the way it goes, he plays hard during the season and expects and hopes to make it, and when they don't, he doesn't take it too hard. He'll go and cheer on his Juniors teammates once the sting and disappointment wears off, which happens faster with each season. He's not big on golfing, but it's fun to be outside and with his guys, so he'll join and pretend his arms hurt from some kind of unnamed season injury and drive the cart around the course while his teammates argue and swing and groan when the tiny ball goes in the wrong place. He likes playing tennis and sometimes he can pout at someone long enough for them to agree to play a few hours with him. He always buys a meal after. He'd finally gotten enough for doubles this offseason, and while it's not the playoffs, it's still fun.
He's a defenseman so it really doesn't get too flashy - it's an entertainment sport so obviously you want to do something on the ice that'll get the fans going but it also has to be in the service of helping the team win because it's the playoffs and we're trying to win a cup here. So it's going out there and blocking as many shots as possible. Sometimes you have a good sequence of that and you end up getting the fans chanting your name like you potted a couple of goals. It's going out there and making the right plays, because the fans here love hockey and if you don't, you'll get the opposite treatment and you'll be blasted in the media and on twitter the next day, and that's arguably worse. Sure, a goal every now and then would be nice to be contributing in both ends, but as long as the team's winning and the fans are entertained, can't ask for much more.
Well, now that we have officially gotten kicked out of the playoffs after a very strenuous 6 games (and it was certainly a good effort at the end of it all) I think Cadmael would be most experienced to comment on this. He would certainly feel nervous about being eliminated, but in a way it's almost a relief for him. Finally the pressure is back off and training can begin once more. However, there is a bitter sweet taste of something being left incomplete and that something is left unfinished. Having one more season left in the minors, Cadmael will, rather than dwell on it, take the time to start practicing in the off season and to make himself better prepared for the Majors when it comes time for him to move up. Of course, it wouldn't be a team offseason with a rousing round of golf in some sunny part of Florida for a few weeks before hitting the ice once again.
Elaina Beneski responds to playoff pressure with this unusual combination of whining, determination and almost out of body zen. It's not an unusual scene to have her back check all the way down the ice, force a turnover, receive the breakout pass and create a scoring chance, all the whole get body language expressing all the flavors of human rage and frustration, her high voice filling the air with a variety of complaints and beratement directed at her teammates and her opponents alike.
On one occasion, one of her line mates had taken to wearing a "lucky" toupee under his helmet during games. After her rang three consecutive scoring chances, courtesy of Elaina, off the post, she she screamed, "I don't like this thing, and here's what I'm doing with it!" as she grabbed the "lucky toupee" and hurled it into the path of the oncoming Zamboni. The toupee was completely destroyed, but the teammate finished his next chance.
Violet certainly doesn't care for showing off in the playoffs. She's still generally learning how to play the game at a professional level at all to begin with, so trying to show off or change up her playing style for the playoffs seems fraught with chances for error (though now that Atlanta is out of the playoffs, maybe it's time to rethink that philosophy). As pressure increases with consecutive games, Violet has realized that she's currently a part of a system that works well rather than defining the system as a whole. As a result, her job until she is clearly performing above those across from her is to fit within said system and ensure that her teammates have a chance to show off and succeed, too -- if that means playing a more defensive playstyle and ending up on a low PK line with no PP time for the foreseeable future, that's something she is willing to adapt to. Until the pressure/expectations for her specifically increase, though, she's content doing what gave her some degree of success in her rookie season.
It's fair for only a hand full of players to be able to have their name etched on the cup. It would take away from the accomplishment if there were many more that got on the championship then there would not be that sense of accomplishment at the end of the season. After a saga of not getting along with his family growing up, there is nothing that fills Totasy with more joy than seeing his name on the Cup with the Pride without the O'Bigbers name beside it as well. He is extremely proud of that accomplishment but craves doing it again. This is why the loss to the Panthers recently has been so devastating. While it is brutal in the moment it is also going to be perfect fuel to make sure that he gives it his all when the Pride make another attempt at it next season because that's where the fun comes in. The chase of wanting to feel that extreme pride in winning it all and having your name being one of the few on the championship at the end of the season
Theo Kane has been involved in the highest level of competition within his age group his entire life which has helped him build a good tolerance to ignore external pressure while competing. Even with all that training and experience throughout his life, emotions can still definitely get high during big games during playoff series. You only have so many chances to go for these championships so you never want to waste them. What is very important though is to ensure you are learning from any loses to help avoid future ones. What I like to do after every playoff lose is to take 1 week off of everything for a mental reset. After that it's a full week dedicated to watching back tape on the playoff series loss and learn as much as possible from the experience. After the hard work is done, it's golf season with the boys until training camp!