Jesse, you can't have it both ways. You say it wasn't coaching, then say Bylsma should have done things differently (PP). It's definitely a bit of everything, from bad coaching, to players not playing their best, to some bad luck even.
Our attack for the most part wasn't working because I saw our guys skating around without support behind them, so they seemed constantly outnumbered. I also did not see us causing enough havoc in front of Rask's net 5on5 or PP. He had it too easy. Unless Boston's D are so physically strong, our guys couldn't handle that? Nah. It's lack of proper directions from Bylsma.
The is a post on HFBoards I like and agree with.
http://hfboards.hockeysfuture.com/showthread.php?t=1447247#66:
There are a bunch of things and at the same time the Hawks are doing some things just like the Pens... they just do it better.
The Hawks stretch pass to players with speed and then support that speed so that player has options. The Pens would stretch pass to some slower players and give him no support. So that player that gets the stretch pass gets eaten alive by any player gapping well.
The Hawks turned that Bruins D around by making smart dumps, getting the puck and then using the endboards to make plays. The Pens were just sucked into the Bruins collapse, skated right into them or skated up to them and put a lame shot on Rask. No poise, no set up...
Bumping Rask every now and then. The Hawks go to the net hard and seem to be getting under his skin. The Pens rushed their shots so net front never became an issue.
The Hawks match up... the Pens don't.
The Hawks can cover Toews and Kane when they don't score. The Pens don't cover Malkin and Sid.
The Hawks best player is finding a way to play well even though he might not have had a great game. Sid played some of the worst hockey I've ever seen him play.
The Hawks are a lot cleaner coming out of their own zone. The Pens made mistake and giveaways that peewee's would laugh at.
Even when the Hawks did make mistakes their structure can take over and keep things safe. Make a mistake... its addressed and adjusted to with structural issues so it doesn't happen again. With the Pens it seems like a mistake is dealt with by telling the player he has to do better next time. No adjustments, no change in plans.
The Hawks know when to reverse the puck. The Pens will force the puck up the wall even if Godzilla is taking a lane away.