In the end speed and desire trumped experience and talent. The Calgary Flames skated and skated Monday night, a frantic pace that eventually wore down a Detroit squad that battled for its life for almost four complete periods. The third period of this game was by far one of the most entertaining 20 minutes of hockey seen in a long time. Both teams took turns rushing the puck down the ice, setting up shots on net that were turned away by some stellar goaltending.
As the first overtime period was winding down it was one of the few veterans on the Calgary team that put away the winning and series ending goal, Marty Gelinas for the second series in a row was the guy that slew the giant. His rebound shot at the 19:13 minute mark, sent the Flames on to the final four with a 1-0 win in an Overtime thriller. Gelinas is becoming an old hand at crushing dreams, he was the goal scorer in the game seven victory over Vancouver that moved the Flames along in the Stanley Cup playoffs. In 2002 as a Carolina Hurricane, he eliminated the Toronto Maple Leafs. Now here he was again, banishing the Red Wings to the sidelines giving Flames fans a chance to enjoy their heroes for at least four and hopefully for eight more games!
The result Monday was an unfair fate for Curtis Joseph, who came back from purgatory this year to lead his team into the second season, his performance in this game six a spectacular display of clutch goaltending as he time and time again turned aside Flame chances, giving his tired and suddenly very slow looking team mates the chance to sneak one by Miikka Kiprusoff. Through this wild game both teams had their chances to win, glancing pucks off the post, goal mouth scrambles all combined to keep the sold out Saddledome crowd on the edge of their seats. Calgary fired 44 shots at Curtis Joseph before finally putting one goal behind him, ending the game, and the Red Wing season.
As the teams shook hands at the end of the game, one couldn’t help but think that we won’t be hearing a lot of these names again in a Detroit uniform. This was probably the last chance for the grey beards in red, many of whom were visibly tired as this game progressed. The Red Wings have provided some memorable games over the years, but with the trouble they had with Nashville and now losing out to a younger and faster Flames team, changes are most likely on their way in the motor city. Injuries to Chris Chelios and Steve Yzerman kept both from this game six finale, will they retire in the off season, only time will tell. Will Dave Lewis survive as head coach of the Wings, or will they re tool with a new hand at the helm. For the wings the games on the ice have come to an end, but there will be a whole lot of action behind the scenes as Mike Illitch rebuilds the Heroes of Hockeytown. Mike Albom put it best with his column in the Free Press prior to game six, "win now or get broken up."
Calgary now moves on to a place they haven’t been to in a very long time, the third round of the Stanley Cup playoffs. They wait now for the winner of the San Jose/Colorado series, and while he probably won’t admit it publicly, Darryl Sutter must be hoping for a chance to return to San Jose. His years at the controls of the Sharks brought them close to success, but he’s worked pure magic in Calgary. Having taken a team that struggled year after year, Sutter turned it into one of the hardest working teams night after night. Whichever team faces the Flames they had better strap themselves in for the ride, there are no free rides through the Saddledome this year. There’s nothing more dangerous than a team that has full confidence in itself, right now the Flames are a very dangerous team.
Monday, May 03, 2004
Punishment in Prague
Six goals for in yesterday’s game, six goals against in Monday’s. For Canada the difference in the two games was glaring. The Czech Republic led by Tomas Vokoun sent the Canadians a message, the push overs are gone, and it’s time to play some hockey.
The Czechs outplayed the Canadians completely in this game; goaltending was an all Vokoun affair, scoring a total domination by the Czech squad as they showed the home town folks that a World Championship may just be within reach. With 34 shots on Roberto Luongo, the Czechs controlled play through the game, Vokoun having little trouble with most of the 23 shots directed his way. His team coasting to a 6-2 win over a disorganized looking Canadian squad.
If this game was to be used as mid term exam by the Canadians then its time to hit the books and pull up the grades. The Canadians never really got into their groove in this game, frequently standing around watching the Czechs pass and shoot at will. Penalties took their toll as Canada collected 10 minor penalties in the sixty minutes, basically one full period spent in the penalty box. Playing short handed for that length of time was just an invitation for disaster, and disaster struck early and often. The referees provided a bit of an adventure through the game, calling mystery penalties, sending players to the box only to haul them out and put someone else in. All in all they provided what appeared to be Rec league quality reffing, for a World Championship game.
The one positive aspect of this drubbing is that it’s purely a positional result; Canada will enter the quarterfinals on Thursday with a game against Finland. The one sided nature of this game should serve as a warning against overconfidence and point out some much needed attention to aspects of the Canadian effort.
The Czechs finish top in their group with the best record in the tournament, they now go on to face the USA in a quarterfinal game. The line up put out by the Czechs would fuel a Don Cherry conspiracy theory for years. Most of the Czech team in this line up is due to the early exits, or non qualification of their NHL teams. Jagr, Prospal, Slegr, Dvorak, Hlinka, Rucinsky, Beranek names that a few weeks ago floundered in an NHL uniform suddenly were flying at breakneck speed in Prague.
With the win over Canada, the Czechs become the favourite to deny the defending Champion Canadians another Gold Medal. But, it was only the preliminary round; Canada is no doubt focused on being in the Gold Medal game, a chance to renew acquaintances with the Czechs high on their list of things to do.
The Czechs outplayed the Canadians completely in this game; goaltending was an all Vokoun affair, scoring a total domination by the Czech squad as they showed the home town folks that a World Championship may just be within reach. With 34 shots on Roberto Luongo, the Czechs controlled play through the game, Vokoun having little trouble with most of the 23 shots directed his way. His team coasting to a 6-2 win over a disorganized looking Canadian squad.
If this game was to be used as mid term exam by the Canadians then its time to hit the books and pull up the grades. The Canadians never really got into their groove in this game, frequently standing around watching the Czechs pass and shoot at will. Penalties took their toll as Canada collected 10 minor penalties in the sixty minutes, basically one full period spent in the penalty box. Playing short handed for that length of time was just an invitation for disaster, and disaster struck early and often. The referees provided a bit of an adventure through the game, calling mystery penalties, sending players to the box only to haul them out and put someone else in. All in all they provided what appeared to be Rec league quality reffing, for a World Championship game.
The one positive aspect of this drubbing is that it’s purely a positional result; Canada will enter the quarterfinals on Thursday with a game against Finland. The one sided nature of this game should serve as a warning against overconfidence and point out some much needed attention to aspects of the Canadian effort.
The Czechs finish top in their group with the best record in the tournament, they now go on to face the USA in a quarterfinal game. The line up put out by the Czechs would fuel a Don Cherry conspiracy theory for years. Most of the Czech team in this line up is due to the early exits, or non qualification of their NHL teams. Jagr, Prospal, Slegr, Dvorak, Hlinka, Rucinsky, Beranek names that a few weeks ago floundered in an NHL uniform suddenly were flying at breakneck speed in Prague.
With the win over Canada, the Czechs become the favourite to deny the defending Champion Canadians another Gold Medal. But, it was only the preliminary round; Canada is no doubt focused on being in the Gold Medal game, a chance to renew acquaintances with the Czechs high on their list of things to do.
Sunday, May 02, 2004
Convincing Canadian Win
Olaf Kolzig probably is used to playing behind a suspect defense; his last few months in Washington were more than enough preparation for the world Championships. But even he must have wondered where all his team mates were on Sunday. Germany seemed tentative at the best of times, but there is no doubt that this was Team Canada’s most dominating performance and convincing victory thus far in the World Championships.
Dany Heatley and Scott Niedermayer set the pace for Canada, as both collected two goals each on the way to a 6-1 drubbing of the seventh ranked German squad. Scott’s brother Rob scored as did Daniel Briere to round out the Canadian scoring. J. S.Giguere got the start for Canada stopping 21 shots, Jochen Hecht gaining the only score for Germany which is not the most offensive minded team to ever put on a pair of skates. The Germans who use a five man line of defense on the blue line, watched as the Canadians made quick work of that idea, pushing the puck deep into the German end, then went to work on the undefended Kolzig.
Canada now prepares for its biggest test of the tournament so far, as they meet the undefeated Home team the Czech Republic on Monday. Tomas Voukoun is set to start for the Czechs, Roberto Luongo in the Canadian net. Canada beat the Czechs last year in the semi finals, but earlier in this tournament lost 8-5 in a tune up match. But at that time the Canadian squad wasn’t really set. Now that they’ve had time to work out the problems the lines are starting to get their game together. The Briere/Heatley tandem is showing some true flow, accounting for five points in the Germany game.
Canada traditionally starts slow in these World tournaments and then builds as each game comes along. It’s a trend that seems to be continuing in this 2004 edition. Fans of Team Canada can only hope that the learning curve continues on its winning way.
Dany Heatley and Scott Niedermayer set the pace for Canada, as both collected two goals each on the way to a 6-1 drubbing of the seventh ranked German squad. Scott’s brother Rob scored as did Daniel Briere to round out the Canadian scoring. J. S.Giguere got the start for Canada stopping 21 shots, Jochen Hecht gaining the only score for Germany which is not the most offensive minded team to ever put on a pair of skates. The Germans who use a five man line of defense on the blue line, watched as the Canadians made quick work of that idea, pushing the puck deep into the German end, then went to work on the undefended Kolzig.
Canada now prepares for its biggest test of the tournament so far, as they meet the undefeated Home team the Czech Republic on Monday. Tomas Voukoun is set to start for the Czechs, Roberto Luongo in the Canadian net. Canada beat the Czechs last year in the semi finals, but earlier in this tournament lost 8-5 in a tune up match. But at that time the Canadian squad wasn’t really set. Now that they’ve had time to work out the problems the lines are starting to get their game together. The Briere/Heatley tandem is showing some true flow, accounting for five points in the Germany game.
Canada traditionally starts slow in these World tournaments and then builds as each game comes along. It’s a trend that seems to be continuing in this 2004 edition. Fans of Team Canada can only hope that the learning curve continues on its winning way.
Maple Leaf Amnesia
Only one team brought it’s “A” game to the rink on Sunday, actually it appeared as if only one team showed up. Philadelphia powered by the tenacity of Keith Primeau took hold of this series and didn’t let go until the final whistle of game five. By the time he and his team mates were finished 7 goals had entered the Leaf net, only two going the other way. A complete annihilation of the Leafs in game five.
The Leafs seemingly forgot it was game day; nobody seemed to be inclined to lend a hand to the embattled Eddie Belfour, left alone time and time again to face the charge of Flyers over the blue line. No one threw a check; no one threw as much as a dirty look. This was a complete team collapse, a display of collective dis-interest that has the Flyers looking to be on the cusp of dismissing the Leafs on Tuesday night. Sunday the Leafs behaved as if they had decided to show some solidarity with workers in British Columbia, they laid down their tools and took the day off, all that was missing was picket sign on the gate of the Leaf bench.
How bad was this game? Quite brutal, each rush providing a scoring chance, Flyer after Flyer would take the play to the Leafs, out hitting them in the corners, punishing them at the blue line, controlling the play in every facet available. Goat horns will no doubt be assigned to Bryan McCabe who made yet more ghastly giveaways in this game, but truth be told he can pass the horns around the room, there are more than enough candidates to go around.
The Leafs didn’t get a shot on net for the first ten minutes of the first period, in the third they waited for the first seventeen minutes to pass by before getting a shot. This game featured a totally dominated team, embarrassed by their lack of effort or interest.
Belfour was pulled after goal number six, Trevor Kidd thrown to the wolves four minutes into the second period. Neither to blame for this loss, the problems came far further up the ice, the Leafs who so dominated the Flyers in game three have gotten off that game plan, no fore check, sloppy play in their own end and a sudden lack of scoring all components of the thumping they took Sunday afternoon.
For the Flyers the domination today came as a relief to players, coaches and fans alike. This is the kind of display they had been expecting through the playoffs, yet somehow they never could put all the pieces together. Sunday everything dropped into place. The Flyers were paced by Primeau who had addressed the players on Saturday in a closed door meeting, motivating his team mates by promising to elevate his game. And from the opening face off Primeau delivered, by the time he was finished his checking, his passing and his shooting he had three goals of his own as part of the 7 goal outburst. Leadership belong to the Flyer captain
The only downside to the game for the Flyers Sunday, was a suspected concussion suffered by Robert Esche in the first period, he never came out of the dressing room for the second period, his injury traced back to a Joe Nieuwendyk shot that hit him square on his mask. The Flyers plan on reviewing his situation on Monday; Sean Burke took over in the third and had little to do as his team controlled the play. Another questionable player for Tuesday is Vladimir Malakhov who also left the game with what was described as an “upper body injury”.
Game Six is back at the ACC on Tuesday, the Leafs will have to shake off this dismal performance and focus on extending this series to the full seven games, to do that they need a huge effort in their home rink. They need to get back to the fast paced, hard hitting style of play that knocked the Flyers on their heels in game three, otherwise the Leafs last stand is Tuesday. Another Leaf performance like this and Tampa can start booking hotel rooms in Philadelphia.
The Leafs seemingly forgot it was game day; nobody seemed to be inclined to lend a hand to the embattled Eddie Belfour, left alone time and time again to face the charge of Flyers over the blue line. No one threw a check; no one threw as much as a dirty look. This was a complete team collapse, a display of collective dis-interest that has the Flyers looking to be on the cusp of dismissing the Leafs on Tuesday night. Sunday the Leafs behaved as if they had decided to show some solidarity with workers in British Columbia, they laid down their tools and took the day off, all that was missing was picket sign on the gate of the Leaf bench.
How bad was this game? Quite brutal, each rush providing a scoring chance, Flyer after Flyer would take the play to the Leafs, out hitting them in the corners, punishing them at the blue line, controlling the play in every facet available. Goat horns will no doubt be assigned to Bryan McCabe who made yet more ghastly giveaways in this game, but truth be told he can pass the horns around the room, there are more than enough candidates to go around.
The Leafs didn’t get a shot on net for the first ten minutes of the first period, in the third they waited for the first seventeen minutes to pass by before getting a shot. This game featured a totally dominated team, embarrassed by their lack of effort or interest.
Belfour was pulled after goal number six, Trevor Kidd thrown to the wolves four minutes into the second period. Neither to blame for this loss, the problems came far further up the ice, the Leafs who so dominated the Flyers in game three have gotten off that game plan, no fore check, sloppy play in their own end and a sudden lack of scoring all components of the thumping they took Sunday afternoon.
For the Flyers the domination today came as a relief to players, coaches and fans alike. This is the kind of display they had been expecting through the playoffs, yet somehow they never could put all the pieces together. Sunday everything dropped into place. The Flyers were paced by Primeau who had addressed the players on Saturday in a closed door meeting, motivating his team mates by promising to elevate his game. And from the opening face off Primeau delivered, by the time he was finished his checking, his passing and his shooting he had three goals of his own as part of the 7 goal outburst. Leadership belong to the Flyer captain
The only downside to the game for the Flyers Sunday, was a suspected concussion suffered by Robert Esche in the first period, he never came out of the dressing room for the second period, his injury traced back to a Joe Nieuwendyk shot that hit him square on his mask. The Flyers plan on reviewing his situation on Monday; Sean Burke took over in the third and had little to do as his team controlled the play. Another questionable player for Tuesday is Vladimir Malakhov who also left the game with what was described as an “upper body injury”.
Game Six is back at the ACC on Tuesday, the Leafs will have to shake off this dismal performance and focus on extending this series to the full seven games, to do that they need a huge effort in their home rink. They need to get back to the fast paced, hard hitting style of play that knocked the Flyers on their heels in game three, otherwise the Leafs last stand is Tuesday. Another Leaf performance like this and Tampa can start booking hotel rooms in Philadelphia.
Brutal attack once again casts shadow over hockey!
The American Hockey League has long been known as a fairly rough and tumble league, made up of players on the cusp of making the NHL and others on their way down and out of the game. It’s that physical play that sometimes is the determining factor as to who will leave the buses behind and reach the NHL.
But by and large the events of Friday night in Hamilton moved beyond the norm, as violence replaced toughness in its ugliest form. The Copps Coliseum crowd witnessed one of the most brutal on ice attacks to ever take place in professional hockey, surpassing perhaps the Brashear/McSorley incident, the Ted Green/Wayne Maki duel in Ottawa so many years ago, or the much publicized Bertuzzi/Moore attack of March this year.
Alexander Perezhogin of the Hamilton Bulldogs, reacted to a slash from Cleveland Baron Garrett Stafford by taking a baseball swing at Stafford’s head, striking in full in the face, knocking out numerous teeth, a broken bone in his face and a third degree concussion. The moment where you feel your complete sense of disgust was the video of Stafford lying on the ice in a pool of blood, convulsing as medical personnel struggled to clear an airway in his throat. Watching that you just wonder what has become of the sport.
Obviously an isolated incident, it once again underscores the complete lack of respect that occasionally flashes during the heat of battle. Perezhogin just lost it completely, there can be no defence offered for his actions, suspended indefinitely pending a review, he awaits a decision on his fate. But short of hiring Clayton Ruby to handle the defence, it seems unfathomable that he’ll be in an AHL uniform anytime soon, if ever again.
For Hockey the incident puts violence back on the front burner, just as the playoffs wind down the Stanley Cup path. Hamilton police are presently investigating the incident with an eye towards possibly filing criminal charges. Perezhogin was a rising star with the Bulldogs, having appeared in the AHL all star game this year, and was a likely prospect at next years Montreal Canadiens training camp. All of that would appear lost now, his inability to control his emotions in the heat of battle sent a fellow player to the hospital, and it most likely has also cost him a shot at reaching the NHL. The native of Kazakhstan most likely will be returning home for good, that is unless he ends up spending time as a guest of the Queen in prison.
The dream of a pro hockey career most likely quashed thanks to extremely poor judgment, some things can’t be taught by a coach, some things you just have to know in your heart. Respect for a player still is not a given, until the players learn how to control their emotions and control their sticks the ugly side of hockey will continue to make headlines. One hopes that the headlines one day don’t turn into obituaries.
But by and large the events of Friday night in Hamilton moved beyond the norm, as violence replaced toughness in its ugliest form. The Copps Coliseum crowd witnessed one of the most brutal on ice attacks to ever take place in professional hockey, surpassing perhaps the Brashear/McSorley incident, the Ted Green/Wayne Maki duel in Ottawa so many years ago, or the much publicized Bertuzzi/Moore attack of March this year.
Alexander Perezhogin of the Hamilton Bulldogs, reacted to a slash from Cleveland Baron Garrett Stafford by taking a baseball swing at Stafford’s head, striking in full in the face, knocking out numerous teeth, a broken bone in his face and a third degree concussion. The moment where you feel your complete sense of disgust was the video of Stafford lying on the ice in a pool of blood, convulsing as medical personnel struggled to clear an airway in his throat. Watching that you just wonder what has become of the sport.
Obviously an isolated incident, it once again underscores the complete lack of respect that occasionally flashes during the heat of battle. Perezhogin just lost it completely, there can be no defence offered for his actions, suspended indefinitely pending a review, he awaits a decision on his fate. But short of hiring Clayton Ruby to handle the defence, it seems unfathomable that he’ll be in an AHL uniform anytime soon, if ever again.
For Hockey the incident puts violence back on the front burner, just as the playoffs wind down the Stanley Cup path. Hamilton police are presently investigating the incident with an eye towards possibly filing criminal charges. Perezhogin was a rising star with the Bulldogs, having appeared in the AHL all star game this year, and was a likely prospect at next years Montreal Canadiens training camp. All of that would appear lost now, his inability to control his emotions in the heat of battle sent a fellow player to the hospital, and it most likely has also cost him a shot at reaching the NHL. The native of Kazakhstan most likely will be returning home for good, that is unless he ends up spending time as a guest of the Queen in prison.
The dream of a pro hockey career most likely quashed thanks to extremely poor judgment, some things can’t be taught by a coach, some things you just have to know in your heart. Respect for a player still is not a given, until the players learn how to control their emotions and control their sticks the ugly side of hockey will continue to make headlines. One hopes that the headlines one day don’t turn into obituaries.
Not Dead Yet!
When the big play needs to be made you call on no ordinary Joe. Joe Sakic once again rose to the occasion for the second straight game as the Avalanche captain single handedly staved off elimination at the hands of the San Jose Sharks. Sakic brought the Avalanche back to life with a tying goal midway through the third and sent them back to Denver for game six with an overtime winning marker at 1:54.
The Overtime winner was one of those goals of lore, a blind pass from Peter Forsberg landed right on Sakic’s stick, its next destination would be behind the back of Evgani Nabakov. Colorado played with a determination today that they hadn’t shown before, taking the game to the Sharks who seemed unable to react to the Avalanche onslaught. With a chance to close out the series on home ice, the Sharks instead turned over the puck, looked tentative on the ice and allowed the Avs to claw their way back into this series.
Colorado had been written off earlier in the series as a team that had no chemistry, nor a killer instinct. Allowing the sharks to dictate the play in the first three games, most expected San Jose to finish them off in their own home in game five. But Colorado led by Sakic has begun to show the power of the multi million, multi talented squad put together with the intention of challenging for the Stanley Cup.
San Jose which hadn’t lost a playoff game at home in six this season, seemed to suffer bouts of doubt, their confidence giving way to occasional panic as the Avs poured on the offence to pull within one win of the Sharks. Ron Wilson’s team is now faced with the unenviable task of having to return to the Pepsi Centre and the rabid Avalanche fans. They may have fallen off the bandwagon after game four, but with this remarkable come back they’ll be at full throttle on Monday night.
Winning at home would have been nice, but for the Sharks winning anywhere should be the goal. Letting Colorado take this series to a game seven is just flirting with disaster, a high octane offense such as the Avalanche will take any opportunity given to them. Should the Sharks make the mistake of giving them many more this remarkable run they’ve been on will come to an unhappy end. Joe Sakic is standing by, hero of game four, hero of game five, another notch just waiting to be carved for hero of game six!
The Overtime winner was one of those goals of lore, a blind pass from Peter Forsberg landed right on Sakic’s stick, its next destination would be behind the back of Evgani Nabakov. Colorado played with a determination today that they hadn’t shown before, taking the game to the Sharks who seemed unable to react to the Avalanche onslaught. With a chance to close out the series on home ice, the Sharks instead turned over the puck, looked tentative on the ice and allowed the Avs to claw their way back into this series.
Colorado had been written off earlier in the series as a team that had no chemistry, nor a killer instinct. Allowing the sharks to dictate the play in the first three games, most expected San Jose to finish them off in their own home in game five. But Colorado led by Sakic has begun to show the power of the multi million, multi talented squad put together with the intention of challenging for the Stanley Cup.
San Jose which hadn’t lost a playoff game at home in six this season, seemed to suffer bouts of doubt, their confidence giving way to occasional panic as the Avs poured on the offence to pull within one win of the Sharks. Ron Wilson’s team is now faced with the unenviable task of having to return to the Pepsi Centre and the rabid Avalanche fans. They may have fallen off the bandwagon after game four, but with this remarkable come back they’ll be at full throttle on Monday night.
Winning at home would have been nice, but for the Sharks winning anywhere should be the goal. Letting Colorado take this series to a game seven is just flirting with disaster, a high octane offense such as the Avalanche will take any opportunity given to them. Should the Sharks make the mistake of giving them many more this remarkable run they’ve been on will come to an unhappy end. Joe Sakic is standing by, hero of game four, hero of game five, another notch just waiting to be carved for hero of game six!
Motor City Burnout
The experts were busy congratulating the Calgary Flames on having had an impressive year, the feeling being that this hard working squad had given it their best, but the Detroit juggernaut would begin the roll with Game Five. Only problem is that Calgary wasn’t paying the least bit of attention. With a largely unproven lineup and a key one game suspension of Ville Niemmenen, not many would have thought that the Flames were ready for a big challenge, but once again Darryl Sutter’s team rose to the occasion.
Saturday afternoon proved to be a tough day for the Detroit Red Wings as the Wings were shut out at he Joe for the first time since Grant Fuhr recorded a goose egg back in 1997. Miikka Kiprusoff once again set the stage with his 31 save performance as the little team that could picked up win number three in the best of seven series, taking the momentum and a chance to eliminate the much admired Red Wings, back to the Saddledome for game 6 on Monday night.
Craig Conroy scored the winning and only goal at 3:53 of the second period, firing a returned pass from Jarome Iginila over the shoulder of Curtis Joseph. The goal the only one of the twenty shots on Cujo to find the mark, but as the game played out it was all that Calgary needed.
By far the dominant player in red tonight was Stephane Yelle, the Flames sparkplug did it all Saturday, blocking shots, making hits and winning key face offs to control the flow of the game, keeping the Red Wings off the score sheet. In addition to the loss on the scoreboard, the game may have been costly in the player personnel department as well. Steve Yzerman took a bouncing shot from Mathieu Schneider which struck him in the face, Yzerman who does not wear a face shield, immediately fell to the ice in severe pain, leaving the ice after a few minutes. He went straight to a Detroit area hospital for x –rays and observation. The Wings hope to have further information by tomorrow morning, should Yzerman be unable to play it will mark the second high profile veteran wing to be sidenlined. Chris Chelios missed his third straight game with an undisclosed injury, adding to the Red Wing woes.
Following the Yzerman injury the Joe Louis crowd sat in stunned silence as Calgary continued on with its planned attack, playing Darryl Sutter’s game plan perfectly. So happy was he with the play of his Flames he deemed tonight’s performance to be a 10.
The usually verbose and loud Detroit fans was given to unaccustomed worry as the winged wheel spun out in the home barn. Having successfully silenced the crowd the next plan for the Flames is to make sure that there is no more hockey in Detroit this year. They can end the series and set the second guessers off in Motown with a win on Monday, suddenly the tight team is the Wings, pressing hard they can’t find the net. Even worse now the superstitions of the playoffs are against the early season favorites, past history shows that the team that wins game five goes on to win the series 80% of the time.
As Calgary proved on Saturday, with Kiprusfoff in the nets, you only need to score once to take a victory. Monday night in Calgary they have a chance to take their team to yet another level; this Flames team is making believers out of a lot of people right now. Most of them could be found sitting across the way in the Detroit bench, with a little luck for Calgary the Wings will be shaking hands by the end of play on Monday night.
Saturday afternoon proved to be a tough day for the Detroit Red Wings as the Wings were shut out at he Joe for the first time since Grant Fuhr recorded a goose egg back in 1997. Miikka Kiprusoff once again set the stage with his 31 save performance as the little team that could picked up win number three in the best of seven series, taking the momentum and a chance to eliminate the much admired Red Wings, back to the Saddledome for game 6 on Monday night.
Craig Conroy scored the winning and only goal at 3:53 of the second period, firing a returned pass from Jarome Iginila over the shoulder of Curtis Joseph. The goal the only one of the twenty shots on Cujo to find the mark, but as the game played out it was all that Calgary needed.
By far the dominant player in red tonight was Stephane Yelle, the Flames sparkplug did it all Saturday, blocking shots, making hits and winning key face offs to control the flow of the game, keeping the Red Wings off the score sheet. In addition to the loss on the scoreboard, the game may have been costly in the player personnel department as well. Steve Yzerman took a bouncing shot from Mathieu Schneider which struck him in the face, Yzerman who does not wear a face shield, immediately fell to the ice in severe pain, leaving the ice after a few minutes. He went straight to a Detroit area hospital for x –rays and observation. The Wings hope to have further information by tomorrow morning, should Yzerman be unable to play it will mark the second high profile veteran wing to be sidenlined. Chris Chelios missed his third straight game with an undisclosed injury, adding to the Red Wing woes.
Following the Yzerman injury the Joe Louis crowd sat in stunned silence as Calgary continued on with its planned attack, playing Darryl Sutter’s game plan perfectly. So happy was he with the play of his Flames he deemed tonight’s performance to be a 10.
The usually verbose and loud Detroit fans was given to unaccustomed worry as the winged wheel spun out in the home barn. Having successfully silenced the crowd the next plan for the Flames is to make sure that there is no more hockey in Detroit this year. They can end the series and set the second guessers off in Motown with a win on Monday, suddenly the tight team is the Wings, pressing hard they can’t find the net. Even worse now the superstitions of the playoffs are against the early season favorites, past history shows that the team that wins game five goes on to win the series 80% of the time.
As Calgary proved on Saturday, with Kiprusfoff in the nets, you only need to score once to take a victory. Monday night in Calgary they have a chance to take their team to yet another level; this Flames team is making believers out of a lot of people right now. Most of them could be found sitting across the way in the Detroit bench, with a little luck for Calgary the Wings will be shaking hands by the end of play on Monday night.
Saturday, May 01, 2004
Luongo Lifts Canada over Latvia
Robert Luongo showed the faithful why he is considered one of the better goaltenders in the game these days, his second period performance keeping a pesky Latvian team off the board. Luongo by far was the best player on the ice Friday as his Canadian team mates took a two goal lead and sat on it for the rest of the game, a strategy that would have been fatal had it not been for the stellar play of Luongo.
Patrice Bergeron and Scott Niedermayer scored the Canadian goals giving Canada a 2 –0 lead by the two minute mark of the second period. After that the Canadians were content to sit on the lead and leave the bulk of the work to Luongo. The Florida Panther Vezina trophy nominee, turned aside 31 shots on the way to his shut out, taking the bulk of his shots in the second and third periods.
The surprise of the night was the choice of Sergei Naumov to tend to the nets for Latvia, as NHL veteran Arturs Irbe was left on the bench. The Latvian coach was hoping to catch Canada off guard with the little know Naumov playing goal. Naumov who played some IHL, ECHL and Roller hockey did an admirable job for Latvia, though he wasn’t tested too severely by the Canadian squad facing only 32 shots, many of them from the peripheral part of the ice. However, for him it was a great game holding Canada to two goals in what many perceived to be a David and Goliath storyline.
Canada remains unbeaten in the World Championships but has yet to play any of the traditional power house squads, which judging by their lack of scoring may be a good thing. There is a definite power outage on the front lines of this team, for whatever reason they are having a hard time adjusting to the larger ice and the peculiar international rules. With their next game coming up against Germany on Sunday, Canada will need to get their forwards to start to take the play deep into the opposing end. When they get there they'll run into an old friend, Washington Capital goaltender Olaf Kolzig is expected to play for Germany in Sunday's match, which should be a good challenge for the Canadian squad.
Even with a star caliber goaltender like Luongo in the nets, playing the bulk of the final two periods in your own end of the rink is only asking for trouble. Defense can win championships, but too much defensive means that your opponent is getting too many chances. Yes defence can win you a championship, but you need some offense to win a game. It might be time to take a few chances and lead the rush down the ice, Luongo is a pretty impressive insurance policy. Team Canada’s Coach Babcock needs to get his team out of its shell, a few more goals in the goals for column, should go a long way to helping this team defend its title.
Patrice Bergeron and Scott Niedermayer scored the Canadian goals giving Canada a 2 –0 lead by the two minute mark of the second period. After that the Canadians were content to sit on the lead and leave the bulk of the work to Luongo. The Florida Panther Vezina trophy nominee, turned aside 31 shots on the way to his shut out, taking the bulk of his shots in the second and third periods.
The surprise of the night was the choice of Sergei Naumov to tend to the nets for Latvia, as NHL veteran Arturs Irbe was left on the bench. The Latvian coach was hoping to catch Canada off guard with the little know Naumov playing goal. Naumov who played some IHL, ECHL and Roller hockey did an admirable job for Latvia, though he wasn’t tested too severely by the Canadian squad facing only 32 shots, many of them from the peripheral part of the ice. However, for him it was a great game holding Canada to two goals in what many perceived to be a David and Goliath storyline.
Canada remains unbeaten in the World Championships but has yet to play any of the traditional power house squads, which judging by their lack of scoring may be a good thing. There is a definite power outage on the front lines of this team, for whatever reason they are having a hard time adjusting to the larger ice and the peculiar international rules. With their next game coming up against Germany on Sunday, Canada will need to get their forwards to start to take the play deep into the opposing end. When they get there they'll run into an old friend, Washington Capital goaltender Olaf Kolzig is expected to play for Germany in Sunday's match, which should be a good challenge for the Canadian squad.
Even with a star caliber goaltender like Luongo in the nets, playing the bulk of the final two periods in your own end of the rink is only asking for trouble. Defense can win championships, but too much defensive means that your opponent is getting too many chances. Yes defence can win you a championship, but you need some offense to win a game. It might be time to take a few chances and lead the rush down the ice, Luongo is a pretty impressive insurance policy. Team Canada’s Coach Babcock needs to get his team out of its shell, a few more goals in the goals for column, should go a long way to helping this team defend its title.
Friday, April 30, 2004
Sundin sets the pace
Toronto Maple Leaf captain Mats Sundin took the reins in game four and sent the Leafs back to Philadelphia tied at two games a piece in the best of seven eastern semi-final. Sundin scored the tying goal and the go ahead one in terrific display of determination Friday night at the Air Canada Centre. The Leafs besting the Flyers for the second game in a row, this time to a score of 3-1.
Simon Gagne gave the Flyers the lead at the seven minute mark as he converted a terrible turnover by Bryan McCabe in front of Ed Belfour, Gagne took the puck in the slot and put it home giving the Flyers an early one goal lead, but for Philly that would be all the scoring this night, as Belfour once again returned to his dominating form and the Leafs defence began to play with more stability.
Sundin then took charge of the game dashing down the left wing at the thirteen minute point and putting a shot into the corner behind Robert Esche. Sundin scored again at 7:45 of the second period, giving the Leafs the lead for good in a game where he dominated all facets of the play. Sundin won the key face-offs, made some terrific passes and scored the goals that made the difference, but for a goal post or wild clearing sweep he would have had a had trick on this Friday night. Darcy Tucker scored the insurance marker 2 minutes into the third period, sending the sell out crowd at the ACC off to celebrate.
A disturbing trend for the Flyers is the sudden vulnerability in the nets, as Robert Esche is beginning to give up goals that should be covered, he seems to be fighting the puck a bit too much now, out dueled again by Ed Belfour who made the key saves when required. Belfour faced 29 shots for his latest win; Esche had 31 shots to work on, giving up three of them as goals.
Once again penalty trouble was the demise of the Flyers who at one point took three consecutive penalties which tired out the penalty killers, the Flyers continued their trend of having terrible second periods. If anything has been the downfall of Philly in the playoffs it’s the inability to control the play in the second frame.
The Leafs weathered an anxious first half of the first period, but after Sundin’s first goal they seemed to regain the confidence they played with in game three. Friday’s game did not feature the massive body checks of game three, the Leafs out hit the Flyers again but the all inclusive nature of the physical play was not part of the play on Friday. Philadelphia had vowed to match the Leafs hit for hit, but when it came time to follow through they chose not to play a physical game. For Sundin it was true show of leadership as the big Swede moved into second place in all time Maple Leaf playoff scoring, his two goals is 67th and 68th points, moving him ahead of Dave Keon and behind only Doug Gilmour who has 77 points.
The teams return to Philadelphia to kick off what has now become a best of three final. Game five goes Sunday afternoon at 4pm EDT (1 pm PST). The Leafs will have to solve the riddle that is the Wachovia center, the Leafs have had a terrible time winning in Philly, but with the momentum on their side for now Game 5 would he as good as time as any to change their luck. The Leaf fans would love to take to the streets after Game six with another step completed on the way to the Stanley Cup.
Simon Gagne gave the Flyers the lead at the seven minute mark as he converted a terrible turnover by Bryan McCabe in front of Ed Belfour, Gagne took the puck in the slot and put it home giving the Flyers an early one goal lead, but for Philly that would be all the scoring this night, as Belfour once again returned to his dominating form and the Leafs defence began to play with more stability.
Sundin then took charge of the game dashing down the left wing at the thirteen minute point and putting a shot into the corner behind Robert Esche. Sundin scored again at 7:45 of the second period, giving the Leafs the lead for good in a game where he dominated all facets of the play. Sundin won the key face-offs, made some terrific passes and scored the goals that made the difference, but for a goal post or wild clearing sweep he would have had a had trick on this Friday night. Darcy Tucker scored the insurance marker 2 minutes into the third period, sending the sell out crowd at the ACC off to celebrate.
A disturbing trend for the Flyers is the sudden vulnerability in the nets, as Robert Esche is beginning to give up goals that should be covered, he seems to be fighting the puck a bit too much now, out dueled again by Ed Belfour who made the key saves when required. Belfour faced 29 shots for his latest win; Esche had 31 shots to work on, giving up three of them as goals.
Once again penalty trouble was the demise of the Flyers who at one point took three consecutive penalties which tired out the penalty killers, the Flyers continued their trend of having terrible second periods. If anything has been the downfall of Philly in the playoffs it’s the inability to control the play in the second frame.
The Leafs weathered an anxious first half of the first period, but after Sundin’s first goal they seemed to regain the confidence they played with in game three. Friday’s game did not feature the massive body checks of game three, the Leafs out hit the Flyers again but the all inclusive nature of the physical play was not part of the play on Friday. Philadelphia had vowed to match the Leafs hit for hit, but when it came time to follow through they chose not to play a physical game. For Sundin it was true show of leadership as the big Swede moved into second place in all time Maple Leaf playoff scoring, his two goals is 67th and 68th points, moving him ahead of Dave Keon and behind only Doug Gilmour who has 77 points.
The teams return to Philadelphia to kick off what has now become a best of three final. Game five goes Sunday afternoon at 4pm EDT (1 pm PST). The Leafs will have to solve the riddle that is the Wachovia center, the Leafs have had a terrible time winning in Philly, but with the momentum on their side for now Game 5 would he as good as time as any to change their luck. The Leaf fans would love to take to the streets after Game six with another step completed on the way to the Stanley Cup.
Talk, Talk is better than War, War!
The two sides in the upcoming labour dispute got together for a little brainstorming session on Thursday, representatives of the NHLPA and the league got together for the first time in seven months. The two sides got together in a downtown Toronto office building and discussed only one issue, that of the much examined salary cap.
The tone of the conversation was said to be cordial, an informative session as the two sides discussed the rationale or lack of one in the concept of a hard salary cap for NHL salaries. The owners are of the opinion that controlling costs is the only real hope for the league to survive and flourish. The players of course for the most part believe that it should completely up to an owner and the player to decide what monetary value they attach to any contracts.
The three hours of discussion and ninety minutes of lunch didn’t seem to change anyone’s mind regarding the contentious issue. The two sides will get together once again for two days in late May. With such fixed ideas on how to proceed you get the feeling that cutting salaries and replacing equipment is going to be the order of the day come the summer. All eyes will be on the chat sessions as we await the September expiration date of the current agreement. If things aren’t resolved by that point talk will be cheap, action will be louder.
Hockey Fans hope that the renewed meetings will lead to a settlement and avoid a lengthy labour dispute that could do irreparable damage to the league and the game.
The tone of the conversation was said to be cordial, an informative session as the two sides discussed the rationale or lack of one in the concept of a hard salary cap for NHL salaries. The owners are of the opinion that controlling costs is the only real hope for the league to survive and flourish. The players of course for the most part believe that it should completely up to an owner and the player to decide what monetary value they attach to any contracts.
The three hours of discussion and ninety minutes of lunch didn’t seem to change anyone’s mind regarding the contentious issue. The two sides will get together once again for two days in late May. With such fixed ideas on how to proceed you get the feeling that cutting salaries and replacing equipment is going to be the order of the day come the summer. All eyes will be on the chat sessions as we await the September expiration date of the current agreement. If things aren’t resolved by that point talk will be cheap, action will be louder.
Hockey Fans hope that the renewed meetings will lead to a settlement and avoid a lengthy labour dispute that could do irreparable damage to the league and the game.
Hamilton trolls for a franchise
Hamilton City council is doing its part to try and attract an NHL franchise for the Steel city. Council today approved a plan that will turn the Copps Coliseum over to a company called HHC should they negotiate a transfer of an existing franchise the plan is for HHC to take over the rink and provide Hamilton City Council with two million dollars in annual rent. The company would also be on the hook for refurbishing the rink to be more compatible with the other rinks in the league, the main missing ingredient is luxury boxes, Copps presently only has 11 boxes, and the plan is to add another 100 in hopes of attracting those fans who wish to watch their hockey in luxury.
It’s not known which franchise the folks a HHC may be trying to lure north, but there is no shortage of troubled franchise in the southern USA. Not much is known about HHC; they keep a rather low profile and haven’t disclosed any of their plans, nor the partners and financiers of the grand idea.
While the dreamers of dreams and schemers of schemes finish off their approach, both Toronto and Buffalo sit back and wonder at what time should they put up their hands and say excuse us. The Leafs and Sabres both would be in line to receive sine sizeable money for territorial infringement. Something HHC says the have made allowances for, all that is left is for a team to come North, How about the Hamilton Hurricanes, Hamilton Mighty Ducks or Hamilton Panthers.
HHC should hold onto their wallets just a little bit longer, depending on how the bargaining sessions between the players and owners go, there could be an overflow of possibilities all at bargain basement prices. Or better yet, teams could be bought out of bankruptcy protection and moved after that. With the league suggesting that most of their franchises are struggling at one time or another, the Hamilton hockey fan could end up with the pick of the litter. The folks in Winnipeg and Quebec City will be watching things closely as well. If the league melts down during labour strife, franchises across Canada could rise from the ashes. It could be that one of the few positive possibilities for the fan, from what is shaping up to be a very dark period for the NHL.
It’s not known which franchise the folks a HHC may be trying to lure north, but there is no shortage of troubled franchise in the southern USA. Not much is known about HHC; they keep a rather low profile and haven’t disclosed any of their plans, nor the partners and financiers of the grand idea.
While the dreamers of dreams and schemers of schemes finish off their approach, both Toronto and Buffalo sit back and wonder at what time should they put up their hands and say excuse us. The Leafs and Sabres both would be in line to receive sine sizeable money for territorial infringement. Something HHC says the have made allowances for, all that is left is for a team to come North, How about the Hamilton Hurricanes, Hamilton Mighty Ducks or Hamilton Panthers.
HHC should hold onto their wallets just a little bit longer, depending on how the bargaining sessions between the players and owners go, there could be an overflow of possibilities all at bargain basement prices. Or better yet, teams could be bought out of bankruptcy protection and moved after that. With the league suggesting that most of their franchises are struggling at one time or another, the Hamilton hockey fan could end up with the pick of the litter. The folks in Winnipeg and Quebec City will be watching things closely as well. If the league melts down during labour strife, franchises across Canada could rise from the ashes. It could be that one of the few positive possibilities for the fan, from what is shaping up to be a very dark period for the NHL.
Thursday, April 29, 2004
Down to a best of three
Detroit took a page from the Calgary playbook of game three and came out flying for Thursday nights Game Four showdown. The Red Wings scored on their first foray into the Flames end of the ice, as Kirk Maltby scored at the 26 second mark of the first, setting the tone for a wild scrambling kind of night. Kris Draper did most of the work on the goal as he took the puck down the boards on the right wing, behind the net and then passed it in front of the Calgary net where Maltby banged it in, silencing the Calgary crowd temporarily.
The made for the only goal of the first period as both teams then began to trade chances from end to end. The shots on goal signifying just how tightly matched these two teams were, Detroit out shot the Flames 11-9 in the first, both teams had 11 shots in the second and 7 shots in the third period. Curtis Joseph and Mikkaa Kiprusoff continued to duel at either end of the rink with Cujo winning this night’s battle. Cujo and the Wings were finding all sorts of ways to keep the Flames off the board when they began to press in the Red Wing end.
The second period looked like it was going to be the end of the Red Wings as the Flames roared out of the gate scoring two goals in eighteen seconds, suddenly putting the Wings on their heels. Calgary had a number of other chances in the wild second period but couldn’t translate the chances into goals. Goal scorers for the Flames were Martin Gelinas and Ville Niemmenen. Red Wing markers came from Mathieu Dandenault, Boyd Deveraux and Henrik Zettenberg in addition to Maltby.
For Birthday boy Curtis Joseph the win came under quite a bit of fire, as Calgary was trying to get back into the game they started crashing the net, putting up the screen and generally tried to get him off his game. But the now 37 year old Cujo was up to the challenge.
To say the win was a big one for Detroit would be an understatement, a loss Thursday would have seen the Wings down 3 games to one, giving the Flames a serious confidence boost. As it is, the series now boils down to a best of three competition. The series now boils down to the young legs of the Flames, against the wise and rehearsed plays of the Wings. Now that they’ve clawed their way back to even, expect the Red Wings to keep up the same pressure as in Game four. For Calgary its more intensity, more shots and a little bit of luck, if a few of the just misses had gone in Thursday, this series would have had a whole different tone to it heading into game 5. Instead of being in a deep hole, Detroit is just as likely to win the series as Calgary is. The teams renew acquaintances on Saturday afternoon at the Joe.
The made for the only goal of the first period as both teams then began to trade chances from end to end. The shots on goal signifying just how tightly matched these two teams were, Detroit out shot the Flames 11-9 in the first, both teams had 11 shots in the second and 7 shots in the third period. Curtis Joseph and Mikkaa Kiprusoff continued to duel at either end of the rink with Cujo winning this night’s battle. Cujo and the Wings were finding all sorts of ways to keep the Flames off the board when they began to press in the Red Wing end.
The second period looked like it was going to be the end of the Red Wings as the Flames roared out of the gate scoring two goals in eighteen seconds, suddenly putting the Wings on their heels. Calgary had a number of other chances in the wild second period but couldn’t translate the chances into goals. Goal scorers for the Flames were Martin Gelinas and Ville Niemmenen. Red Wing markers came from Mathieu Dandenault, Boyd Deveraux and Henrik Zettenberg in addition to Maltby.
For Birthday boy Curtis Joseph the win came under quite a bit of fire, as Calgary was trying to get back into the game they started crashing the net, putting up the screen and generally tried to get him off his game. But the now 37 year old Cujo was up to the challenge.
To say the win was a big one for Detroit would be an understatement, a loss Thursday would have seen the Wings down 3 games to one, giving the Flames a serious confidence boost. As it is, the series now boils down to a best of three competition. The series now boils down to the young legs of the Flames, against the wise and rehearsed plays of the Wings. Now that they’ve clawed their way back to even, expect the Red Wings to keep up the same pressure as in Game four. For Calgary its more intensity, more shots and a little bit of luck, if a few of the just misses had gone in Thursday, this series would have had a whole different tone to it heading into game 5. Instead of being in a deep hole, Detroit is just as likely to win the series as Calgary is. The teams renew acquaintances on Saturday afternoon at the Joe.
HABS-ence makes the heart grow fonder
Finally Montreal just ran out of steam and out of time. They found a stronger, faster opponent, one which acquired a taste for the playoffs last year and improved their game, improvements that have them the hot club of 2004. Tampa once again made quick work of an opponent, taking the Habs out in four straight games, defeating them Thursday 3-1 at the Bell centre, making believers of those who may have doubted their success thus far.
Dan Boyle and Brad Richards did all the damage in the second period as the Bolts came back after an early first period Montreal goal by Nicklas Sundstrom. Three back to back penalties by Montreal in the second started off the Tampa scoring outburst, as Boyle scored on the Power Play and Richards scored shortly after Montreal had killed off another short handed situation. As the teams left the ice in the second, Montreal was tied in shots but trailing on the scoreboard and once again it was Nikolai Khabibulan who could take credit for the Montreal frustrations.
Both goaltenders continued their stellar play and despite the four to none sweep, Montreal had their chances. The Habs out shot the Bolts 28-24 tonight and coming oh so close to winning game three two nights ago. When they do the post season wrap on their efforts the Habs can look back to the last minute of game three as the turning point. The slight lapse in intensity in that last minute allowed Tampa to recover the momentum, tying the game and going on to win it in OT. As they headed into game four Tampa knew they had Montreal on the ropes and as the game progressed the Tampa speed paid off, as they took the play to Montreal in the second, finishing them off in the third with an empty net goal by Fredrik Modin as time dwindled down.
Tampa can now rest their sore bodies and take care of the aches and pains as the Flyers and Leafs continue their battle, the winner of that series will meet the Bolts in the Eastern Conference final. The Lightning must be feeling pretty secure at the moment, offensively they’ve finally got their big guns moving and even when they make a defensive lapse Khabibulan is in the net and Khabibulan is making this team look very good right now. The only question for Tampa is how long a rest is good for them, would they rather have Toronto and Philly beat each other up over 7 games, or finish things off quickly and set up the next round. Regardless, with the young legs available to the John Tortorella, they should be fresh and ready to continue their march next week.
For Montreal, a huge series against a traditional rival may have been all they could hope for this year. Claude Julien’s squad made a game effort of it in games three and four, but the total domination of the Habs in the first two games pretty well told the story of this series. Saku Koivu spoke for all his team mates when he expressed disappointment at the way the playoff run ended, but even in his disappointment he must know that his team is poised to take the next step. Montreal can continue to build for the future, having taken a core group of players on to the second round. Look for Bob Gainey to start to tinker with his line up now, finding the right combinations to put the Habs further into the playoffs next time around.
For now Canada loses another participant in the chase for Stanley, like Vancouver and Ottawa before them, Montreal will have to limit their participation in the playoffs to La Soiree du Hockey or Hockey Night in Canada. The only difference between the three, Vancouver and Ottawa were terribly disappointing finishes, Montreal’s unexpected run of comeback success, ending in not so much as disappointment but more of a promise of better things to come.
Dan Boyle and Brad Richards did all the damage in the second period as the Bolts came back after an early first period Montreal goal by Nicklas Sundstrom. Three back to back penalties by Montreal in the second started off the Tampa scoring outburst, as Boyle scored on the Power Play and Richards scored shortly after Montreal had killed off another short handed situation. As the teams left the ice in the second, Montreal was tied in shots but trailing on the scoreboard and once again it was Nikolai Khabibulan who could take credit for the Montreal frustrations.
Both goaltenders continued their stellar play and despite the four to none sweep, Montreal had their chances. The Habs out shot the Bolts 28-24 tonight and coming oh so close to winning game three two nights ago. When they do the post season wrap on their efforts the Habs can look back to the last minute of game three as the turning point. The slight lapse in intensity in that last minute allowed Tampa to recover the momentum, tying the game and going on to win it in OT. As they headed into game four Tampa knew they had Montreal on the ropes and as the game progressed the Tampa speed paid off, as they took the play to Montreal in the second, finishing them off in the third with an empty net goal by Fredrik Modin as time dwindled down.
Tampa can now rest their sore bodies and take care of the aches and pains as the Flyers and Leafs continue their battle, the winner of that series will meet the Bolts in the Eastern Conference final. The Lightning must be feeling pretty secure at the moment, offensively they’ve finally got their big guns moving and even when they make a defensive lapse Khabibulan is in the net and Khabibulan is making this team look very good right now. The only question for Tampa is how long a rest is good for them, would they rather have Toronto and Philly beat each other up over 7 games, or finish things off quickly and set up the next round. Regardless, with the young legs available to the John Tortorella, they should be fresh and ready to continue their march next week.
For Montreal, a huge series against a traditional rival may have been all they could hope for this year. Claude Julien’s squad made a game effort of it in games three and four, but the total domination of the Habs in the first two games pretty well told the story of this series. Saku Koivu spoke for all his team mates when he expressed disappointment at the way the playoff run ended, but even in his disappointment he must know that his team is poised to take the next step. Montreal can continue to build for the future, having taken a core group of players on to the second round. Look for Bob Gainey to start to tinker with his line up now, finding the right combinations to put the Habs further into the playoffs next time around.
For now Canada loses another participant in the chase for Stanley, like Vancouver and Ottawa before them, Montreal will have to limit their participation in the playoffs to La Soiree du Hockey or Hockey Night in Canada. The only difference between the three, Vancouver and Ottawa were terribly disappointing finishes, Montreal’s unexpected run of comeback success, ending in not so much as disappointment but more of a promise of better things to come.
Joe Sakic to the rescue
Colorado hockey fans can keep their dream alive for at least one more night, as Joe Sakic scored in Overtime to give the Avalanche a 1-0 win over the San Jose Sharks, avoiding the ugly possibility of being swept out of the playoffs on their own home ice. Sakic was the hero of the night, as he finally got a goal behind Evgani Nabakov at 5:15 of the first overtime, his first goal in this series which has featured a drought for many of the Avalanche scorers. Indeed Sakic’s marker was the first Colorado goal since the first period of game 2.
While the loss will be a disappointment for the Sharks who had hoped to put their stamp on this series with a four game sweep, they have the opportunity to win in five games on home ice Saturday afternoon.
Both goaltenders put on a pretty good show, with Aebischer collecting his first shut out in the playoffs as he held the fort for the Avs, turning aside all 27 Sharks shots. Evgani Nabakov was amazing in the Sharks end facing 35 shots from a determined Avalanche team, many of the saves on point blank blasts from the likes of Hejduk, Sakic and Hinote.
Despite the win the road ahead is tough one for the Avalanche who will have to take both games in San Jose and another in Denver to come back to win the series. The Sharks have outscored the Avs 9-3 on games in San Jose, so a change in approach is going to be necessary to reverse their fortune.
For Tony Granato this series could determine his fate as coach of the Avs. Had they been swept on Wednesday night it was generally believed that he would not be back next year. He may still be on the hot seat, his team was caught a couple of times making ill timed changes leaving Aebischer on his own to face down Shark scorers. Its miscues like that which can make the difference between a win and a loss, continuing on or being eliminated. Granato needs to have his team to mount a comeback and defy history, otherwise he will be history.
While the loss will be a disappointment for the Sharks who had hoped to put their stamp on this series with a four game sweep, they have the opportunity to win in five games on home ice Saturday afternoon.
Both goaltenders put on a pretty good show, with Aebischer collecting his first shut out in the playoffs as he held the fort for the Avs, turning aside all 27 Sharks shots. Evgani Nabakov was amazing in the Sharks end facing 35 shots from a determined Avalanche team, many of the saves on point blank blasts from the likes of Hejduk, Sakic and Hinote.
Despite the win the road ahead is tough one for the Avalanche who will have to take both games in San Jose and another in Denver to come back to win the series. The Sharks have outscored the Avs 9-3 on games in San Jose, so a change in approach is going to be necessary to reverse their fortune.
For Tony Granato this series could determine his fate as coach of the Avs. Had they been swept on Wednesday night it was generally believed that he would not be back next year. He may still be on the hot seat, his team was caught a couple of times making ill timed changes leaving Aebischer on his own to face down Shark scorers. Its miscues like that which can make the difference between a win and a loss, continuing on or being eliminated. Granato needs to have his team to mount a comeback and defy history, otherwise he will be history.
Leafs deliver a message
Everybody seemed to make a hit on Wednesday night, from Mogilny to McCabe. Domi to Leetch, the bodies were flying and with the increased physical attention came some scoring opportunities for the Leafs. Opportunities that they took advantage of sending the Flyers a message that any thoughts of a four game sweep should be put away, smash mouth hockey was back at the ACC. In a highly entertaining fast paced game the Leafs announced that they were back with a commanding 4-1 defeat of the Philadelphia Flyers. Bringing the Leafs back to within one game of the Flyers in the best of seven series, the Flyers holding a 2 game to 1 lead.
Toronto set the pace in Game three as they delivered body check after body check on a suddenly very undisciplined Philadelphia team. Finally able to get some bodies in front of Robert Esche the Leafs found that he can’t stop what he doesn’t see. With Esche looking quite shaky at times, the Leafs capitalized on rebounds and sloppy defence. Four different Leafs got goals on Wednesday night a veritable scoring binge compared to their efforts of the past few games. Toronto fired 29 shots at the embattled Esche who must have been wondering where his defence had gone in game three. Alexander Mogilny, Alexei Ponikarovsky, Chad Kilger and Darcy Tucker found enough space to score on Esche, Tony Amonte claiming the only goal for Philly.
The insertion of Wade Belak seemed to set the tone for the night as his line of Ponikarovsky and Antropov seemed to shut down the Flyers trio of Primeau, Gagne and Brashear. The Leafs who played the fore-check in fine style, controlled a lot of the play in this game crashing a Flyer every time they got close to a puck. The domination by the Leafs was backed up by a return to form of Eddie Belfour who faced a rather easy game, tossing aside 18 of the 19 shots directed his way. Another change that paid off dividends was the insertion of Alexander Mogilny on the first line with Mats Sundin and Gary Roberts, Mogilny took advantage of his elevation to inspire his team mates with some crushing hits and put some points on the board as well. The Flyers were so fixated on Mogilny that by the end of the game they were taking undisciplined runs at the Leaf, putting them deeper and deeper into the hole they had created for themselves.
The night featured the kind of performance that Pat Quinn had challenged his team to come up with after losing the first two games in Philadelphia. Flyer coach Ken Hitchcock put it best when he said that the Flyers’ level of intensity dropped while the Leafs went up, which made the difference in Game three.
Quinn will want to play a tape of the game over and over again on the day off Thursday, keeping his troops motivated for Game Four on Friday. For Hitchcock he’ll need to remind his players to focus on the job at hand, they’re not going to beat the Leafs while sitting in the penalty box. Giving up as much of the ice to Toronto as they did Wednesday will only bring them more of the same on Friday. Letting Toronto carry the physical game to them is only a recipe for a seven game series.
Toronto set the pace in Game three as they delivered body check after body check on a suddenly very undisciplined Philadelphia team. Finally able to get some bodies in front of Robert Esche the Leafs found that he can’t stop what he doesn’t see. With Esche looking quite shaky at times, the Leafs capitalized on rebounds and sloppy defence. Four different Leafs got goals on Wednesday night a veritable scoring binge compared to their efforts of the past few games. Toronto fired 29 shots at the embattled Esche who must have been wondering where his defence had gone in game three. Alexander Mogilny, Alexei Ponikarovsky, Chad Kilger and Darcy Tucker found enough space to score on Esche, Tony Amonte claiming the only goal for Philly.
The insertion of Wade Belak seemed to set the tone for the night as his line of Ponikarovsky and Antropov seemed to shut down the Flyers trio of Primeau, Gagne and Brashear. The Leafs who played the fore-check in fine style, controlled a lot of the play in this game crashing a Flyer every time they got close to a puck. The domination by the Leafs was backed up by a return to form of Eddie Belfour who faced a rather easy game, tossing aside 18 of the 19 shots directed his way. Another change that paid off dividends was the insertion of Alexander Mogilny on the first line with Mats Sundin and Gary Roberts, Mogilny took advantage of his elevation to inspire his team mates with some crushing hits and put some points on the board as well. The Flyers were so fixated on Mogilny that by the end of the game they were taking undisciplined runs at the Leaf, putting them deeper and deeper into the hole they had created for themselves.
The night featured the kind of performance that Pat Quinn had challenged his team to come up with after losing the first two games in Philadelphia. Flyer coach Ken Hitchcock put it best when he said that the Flyers’ level of intensity dropped while the Leafs went up, which made the difference in Game three.
Quinn will want to play a tape of the game over and over again on the day off Thursday, keeping his troops motivated for Game Four on Friday. For Hitchcock he’ll need to remind his players to focus on the job at hand, they’re not going to beat the Leafs while sitting in the penalty box. Giving up as much of the ice to Toronto as they did Wednesday will only bring them more of the same on Friday. Letting Toronto carry the physical game to them is only a recipe for a seven game series.
Wednesday, April 28, 2004
Canada finds a second gear
It took a period of play and a shuffling of the lines, but Canada finally found some offence at the World Championships. Dany Heatley scored two goals on the way to a 3-1 victory over 9th ranked Switzerland. Brendan Morrison scooped up a loose puck and put it behind the Anaheim Duck's Martin Gerber for the second Canadian goal. Heatley was back in action again in the third period with the team's third and final goal. Canada out shot the Swiss 18-3 in the second frame, making up for a tentative first period which saw them out shot by the Swiss 12-6. Canada had 10 to Switzerland’s 7 shots in the third.
By the time Morrison put the puck in the net, it was clear that Canada was in control of the game and were starting to find their legs, much to the relief of the teams’ fans. The first three games of this tournament have been a rollercoaster for Team Canada, starting with the departure of head coach Joel Quenneville due to bad health. The Canadians managed to win their preliminary pool, despite some early problems on the ice. They barely came back to tie Austria and then had to hang on to defeat the French.
This final preliminary game will be seen as a major confidence boost for the Canadians, who began to come at the Swiss in waves as they got their game together in the third period. The Swiss had a short burst of energy with seven minutes to go, sneaking a goal behind Robert Luongo, but for the most part Canada controlled the play and weren’t really in any danger of losing this one.
The turning point came after the first period, when head coach Mike Babcock shuffled his lines, moving Heatley onto a line with Brenden Morrow and Daniel Briere; the combination clicked quickly getting Heatley his goal 44 seconds into the second. Brier and Heatley combined again for the final Canadian goal.
Canada now moves on to the Qualifying round with games against Germany, Latvia and the Czech Republic, the first game against Germany goes on Friday. They head into that round feeling better about their play, this third game a solid effort that got them back on track. The Swiss made up of European pros are considered one of the better teams so being able to control the play as much as they did should go a long way to heading into the next round in a positive frame of mind. They seem better able to adjust to the change of style and the slight differences of international play.
Canada is hoping to build on the momentum of the win and take the play to the Germans on Friday. Having had problems with Germany in the past, the Canadians won’t make the mistake of looking past the game at hand. With little room for error in these championships that old cliché, one game at a time, never had more resonance.
By the time Morrison put the puck in the net, it was clear that Canada was in control of the game and were starting to find their legs, much to the relief of the teams’ fans. The first three games of this tournament have been a rollercoaster for Team Canada, starting with the departure of head coach Joel Quenneville due to bad health. The Canadians managed to win their preliminary pool, despite some early problems on the ice. They barely came back to tie Austria and then had to hang on to defeat the French.
This final preliminary game will be seen as a major confidence boost for the Canadians, who began to come at the Swiss in waves as they got their game together in the third period. The Swiss had a short burst of energy with seven minutes to go, sneaking a goal behind Robert Luongo, but for the most part Canada controlled the play and weren’t really in any danger of losing this one.
The turning point came after the first period, when head coach Mike Babcock shuffled his lines, moving Heatley onto a line with Brenden Morrow and Daniel Briere; the combination clicked quickly getting Heatley his goal 44 seconds into the second. Brier and Heatley combined again for the final Canadian goal.
Canada now moves on to the Qualifying round with games against Germany, Latvia and the Czech Republic, the first game against Germany goes on Friday. They head into that round feeling better about their play, this third game a solid effort that got them back on track. The Swiss made up of European pros are considered one of the better teams so being able to control the play as much as they did should go a long way to heading into the next round in a positive frame of mind. They seem better able to adjust to the change of style and the slight differences of international play.
Canada is hoping to build on the momentum of the win and take the play to the Germans on Friday. Having had problems with Germany in the past, the Canadians won’t make the mistake of looking past the game at hand. With little room for error in these championships that old cliché, one game at a time, never had more resonance.
Fanning the Flames of Determination
19,289 fans were ready to party and while there were a few bumps along the way, by the time 60 minutes of play had ended they finally got their chance to let loose. Darryl Sutter credited a total team effort, for a hard earned 3-2 Flame victory over the Red Wings Tuesday night. Jarome Iginla picked up his first goal of this series as he managed to elude the heavy blanket the Wings had put over him in games 1 and 2. Iggy was a major factor in Tuesday's game as he finally had some space to operate and cause a bit of havoc in the Detroit end of the ice.
Rolling four lines all night long the Flames took the fore-check to the Wings, beating them to the puck and getting one, two and sometimes three shots in a row on Curtis Joseph. Stephane Yelle and Shean Donovan scored the other two markers for Calgary, Robert Land and Jiri Fischer countered for the Wings.
Power play opportunities gave the Flames the chance to score and control the play for large amounts of time. A situation that wasn’t lost on Wings head coach Dave Lewis, who questioned the four straight power plays awarded to the Flames, one of which resulted in the Iginla goal in the second. Lewis expressed his frustration with the officials offering up the suggestion that as he saw it, his players were getting mugged. Ending up on the short side of a score does tend to decrease your love of the tight checking style of playoff hockey.
Both goaltenders were tested often during the game and came up big when the time came to keep things close. Curtis Joseph faced 27 shots in the Red Wing net, while Miikka Kiprusoff had 29 shots directed his way.
Game four is Thursday night, and for the Flames it’s a chance to put some added pressure on the Red Wings. Detroit is already calling Game four a must game for their Stanley Cup chances, we can expect a hard hitting, high flying affair with a hint of desperation from the Red Wing side of the ice. The hard working Flames will just keep doing what they’ve been doing all through the playoffs, sending out line after line of guys not afraid to head for the corners, take the hits and make the plays.
Thus far it’s been a recipe for success, so don’t expect Darryl Sutter to change anything now. He has his team playing a style of hockey that has the fans excited and the players believing, that could be a huge obstacle for the Red Wings to conquer. The Saddledome will be rocking once again on Thursday, if the Wings thought things were loud on Tuesday they had best prepare for Game four. Should Calgary take a 3-1 lead by the end of play on Thursday, the Saddledome may end up an open air stadium.
Rolling four lines all night long the Flames took the fore-check to the Wings, beating them to the puck and getting one, two and sometimes three shots in a row on Curtis Joseph. Stephane Yelle and Shean Donovan scored the other two markers for Calgary, Robert Land and Jiri Fischer countered for the Wings.
Power play opportunities gave the Flames the chance to score and control the play for large amounts of time. A situation that wasn’t lost on Wings head coach Dave Lewis, who questioned the four straight power plays awarded to the Flames, one of which resulted in the Iginla goal in the second. Lewis expressed his frustration with the officials offering up the suggestion that as he saw it, his players were getting mugged. Ending up on the short side of a score does tend to decrease your love of the tight checking style of playoff hockey.
Both goaltenders were tested often during the game and came up big when the time came to keep things close. Curtis Joseph faced 27 shots in the Red Wing net, while Miikka Kiprusoff had 29 shots directed his way.
Game four is Thursday night, and for the Flames it’s a chance to put some added pressure on the Red Wings. Detroit is already calling Game four a must game for their Stanley Cup chances, we can expect a hard hitting, high flying affair with a hint of desperation from the Red Wing side of the ice. The hard working Flames will just keep doing what they’ve been doing all through the playoffs, sending out line after line of guys not afraid to head for the corners, take the hits and make the plays.
Thus far it’s been a recipe for success, so don’t expect Darryl Sutter to change anything now. He has his team playing a style of hockey that has the fans excited and the players believing, that could be a huge obstacle for the Red Wings to conquer. The Saddledome will be rocking once again on Thursday, if the Wings thought things were loud on Tuesday they had best prepare for Game four. Should Calgary take a 3-1 lead by the end of play on Thursday, the Saddledome may end up an open air stadium.
Tuesday, April 27, 2004
Stranglehold!
Saku Koivu and his teammates are saying all the right things, the series isn’t over yet, this team can come back, we’ll give it everything we’ve got. But the simple truth is the Habs are in a big hole, after a heartbreaking 4-3 overtime loss to Tampa Bay on Tuesday night.
Now they have to believe that they’re coming back, as they prepare for game four on Thursday. But the way that game three got away from the Habs, will haunt them for the next game and most likely into the off season. Vincent Lecavalier tied the game with only 17 seconds to go in regulation time, setting the stage for an exciting overtime period. Brad Richards brought a quick end to the night with the winning goal at 1:05 of overtime. Lecavalier’s goal effectively silenced the sell out crowd of over 21,000 which had been singing the Na Na Na Goodbye song loudly with 18 seconds to go in the third. It was different tune on the way out of the Bell centre at the end of the game, something more akin to the blues, and no one was bopping.
Montreal outplayed the Lightning for the majority of the game, but the Bolts kept close enough to make the charge near the end and in OT. The Canadiens out shot the Bolts 31-28 and had numerous chances to build on their lead and put the game away. But, once again Nikolai Khabibulan was there to frustrate the Montreal attack; Khabibulan stepped up and kept his team in the game, setting up the frantic finish and thrilling overtime victory.
Montreal has the unenviable position of having to launch a four game comeback, something that has only been twice before in playoff history. While you never want to say something is impossible, the way the Lightning is playing that will be a huge task for the Habs. The Bolts know they are in the driver’s seat now, the large number of Quebecers in their line up would like nothing better than to bid farewell to the family and friends on Thursday night, with a four to nothing sweep of the hometown Habs.
If nothing else at least Montrealers and Quebecers alike have found a team to cheer for as the playoffs continue. If the Canadiens can’t make the journey, this Lightning team might make for a nice surrogate squad for all of Quebec. Break out the sun tan lotion and Lightning sun hats Hab fans, it looks like your next playoff round will start in Tampa Bay, travel agents are standing by for your calls.
Now they have to believe that they’re coming back, as they prepare for game four on Thursday. But the way that game three got away from the Habs, will haunt them for the next game and most likely into the off season. Vincent Lecavalier tied the game with only 17 seconds to go in regulation time, setting the stage for an exciting overtime period. Brad Richards brought a quick end to the night with the winning goal at 1:05 of overtime. Lecavalier’s goal effectively silenced the sell out crowd of over 21,000 which had been singing the Na Na Na Goodbye song loudly with 18 seconds to go in the third. It was different tune on the way out of the Bell centre at the end of the game, something more akin to the blues, and no one was bopping.
Montreal outplayed the Lightning for the majority of the game, but the Bolts kept close enough to make the charge near the end and in OT. The Canadiens out shot the Bolts 31-28 and had numerous chances to build on their lead and put the game away. But, once again Nikolai Khabibulan was there to frustrate the Montreal attack; Khabibulan stepped up and kept his team in the game, setting up the frantic finish and thrilling overtime victory.
Montreal has the unenviable position of having to launch a four game comeback, something that has only been twice before in playoff history. While you never want to say something is impossible, the way the Lightning is playing that will be a huge task for the Habs. The Bolts know they are in the driver’s seat now, the large number of Quebecers in their line up would like nothing better than to bid farewell to the family and friends on Thursday night, with a four to nothing sweep of the hometown Habs.
If nothing else at least Montrealers and Quebecers alike have found a team to cheer for as the playoffs continue. If the Canadiens can’t make the journey, this Lightning team might make for a nice surrogate squad for all of Quebec. Break out the sun tan lotion and Lightning sun hats Hab fans, it looks like your next playoff round will start in Tampa Bay, travel agents are standing by for your calls.
More of a scrimmage than a game
Canada’s World Championship quest got back on track Tuesday, as the Canadian squad had little trouble taming the French team with a 3-0 victory.
With the pace of a controlled scrimmage Canada tested out line combinations and got J. S. Giguere a little goaltending practice, as the French squad provided little in the way of a threat. Giguere handled all 19 French shots with ease. The first period his most active as the French managed to get 9 shots on net, dropping to 3 in the second and 7 by the time the third period rolled around. The French who are back in the “A” pool for the first time since the 2000 Championships are not exactly an offensive threat, so far in the tournament they have been outscored 15-0 and hold a record of 0-3-0.
France rested Cristobol Huet of the LA Kings, for thier next game, the first of the regulation round which they need to win to stay in the "A" pool. For Canada they threw goaltender Fabrice Lhenry to the wolves. Fortunately for Lhenry the wolves weren’t particularly hungry; he faced 38 shots but only surrendered the three goals. He put on an admirable performance in support of an overmatched team. The French were on the short end of all facets of the game, hitting, shooting, scoring Canada controlled the flow of the game. Their only former NHLer was Sebastien Bordeleau who logged most of the ice time for the French, though he didn’t have much success against the Canadians.
Glen Murray got one goal for Canada and Shawn Horcoff put two behind Lhenry for the win as Canada gained revenge for the last match up between the two countries. The 1995 World Championships featured an upset 4-1 win by France over Canada. Canada at the time represented by minor league and European based professionals. There was never any danger of a similar embarrassment in this game.
While they take the win and improve their record, they need to increase the intensity level for tomorrow’s game against the Swiss. With goals in the first and second period, Canada coasted through the third period registering only 9 shots on net after marking 17 and 12 shots on goal in the first two periods. While it may be that they were playing more of a defensive shell in the third it was more likely that they lost interest in the game by the third. Such was nature of the flow of the game, end to end it wasn’t. That is unless you count the shifting of bodies from one end of the bench to the other waiting their turn to go out for a skate.
With the pace of a controlled scrimmage Canada tested out line combinations and got J. S. Giguere a little goaltending practice, as the French squad provided little in the way of a threat. Giguere handled all 19 French shots with ease. The first period his most active as the French managed to get 9 shots on net, dropping to 3 in the second and 7 by the time the third period rolled around. The French who are back in the “A” pool for the first time since the 2000 Championships are not exactly an offensive threat, so far in the tournament they have been outscored 15-0 and hold a record of 0-3-0.
France rested Cristobol Huet of the LA Kings, for thier next game, the first of the regulation round which they need to win to stay in the "A" pool. For Canada they threw goaltender Fabrice Lhenry to the wolves. Fortunately for Lhenry the wolves weren’t particularly hungry; he faced 38 shots but only surrendered the three goals. He put on an admirable performance in support of an overmatched team. The French were on the short end of all facets of the game, hitting, shooting, scoring Canada controlled the flow of the game. Their only former NHLer was Sebastien Bordeleau who logged most of the ice time for the French, though he didn’t have much success against the Canadians.
Glen Murray got one goal for Canada and Shawn Horcoff put two behind Lhenry for the win as Canada gained revenge for the last match up between the two countries. The 1995 World Championships featured an upset 4-1 win by France over Canada. Canada at the time represented by minor league and European based professionals. There was never any danger of a similar embarrassment in this game.
While they take the win and improve their record, they need to increase the intensity level for tomorrow’s game against the Swiss. With goals in the first and second period, Canada coasted through the third period registering only 9 shots on net after marking 17 and 12 shots on goal in the first two periods. While it may be that they were playing more of a defensive shell in the third it was more likely that they lost interest in the game by the third. Such was nature of the flow of the game, end to end it wasn’t. That is unless you count the shifting of bodies from one end of the bench to the other waiting their turn to go out for a skate.
Monday, April 26, 2004
Avalanche Sliding towards elimination
33 shots after the start of Game three, the Colorado Avalanche found out that they were no closer to solving the riddle that has become Evgani Nabakov, they are however one more loss away from not having to worry about him anymore.
For the third game in a row Colorado came up short on the scoreboard as the San Jose Sharks took a one goal lead and turned it into a Game Three win, putting the Avalanche one loss away from being swept and eliminated from this years Stanley Cup Playoffs.
For Nabakov it was his second shut out in the playoffs this season as he leads the Sharks with outstanding goaltending. The unusually quiet Pepsi Centre crowd sat back and watched their Avalanche play a better game than the previous two efforts this series, but yet it wasn’t enough to capture a win. Vincent Damphousse put in the winning goal halfway through the third period, deflating the crowd further and taking all steam out of the Avalanche bench.
Holding the Sharks to 17 shots wasn’t enough on this night, as Nabakov shut the door, until Damphousse capitalized on his lucky break, banking the winning shot off of Aebischer into the net.
All that seems to be left now in this series is to see if Colorado can avoid being eliminated in four straight. There seems little chance of them being capable of winning four in a row to advance this year. They now have a choice, they can bow out in four and await the media onslaught or drag things out a few more days before facing the expected critical reviews of the season that was supposed to be, but isn’t going to be.
The loaded line up provided for Tony Granato at the start of the season was expected to challenge if not win the Cup. Through the regular season the sputtered and stalled. Featuring that season ending crash where they fell down the standings in the final month of action. They managed to put away a rather old and tired looking Dallas team but against these Sharks they just haven’t performed.
San Jose has out skated, out hit, outscored and of course totally dominated the goaltending in the series. That is why they sit 3 games up and fully in control of things. Colorado look lost on the ice, unsure as to how they should handle the faster and more physical Sharks.
On Wednesday night this most disappointing of seasons will most likely come to an end for Colorado fans. The newspapers and call in shows are probably already ahead of the pack, in dissecting what went wrong. A season that offered up so much promise in September is now crashing in disappointment before the end of April. Pierre Lacroix has a bit of work ahead of him, a lineup that features the likes of a Sakic, Forsberg, Kariya, Foote, Hejduk and Blake should not be floundering like they have in this series.
One thing is certain, Head coaching resumes will be flying into the Avalanche offices right after the post series handshakes, Pierre should start wondering if the GM resumes are arriving as well!
For the third game in a row Colorado came up short on the scoreboard as the San Jose Sharks took a one goal lead and turned it into a Game Three win, putting the Avalanche one loss away from being swept and eliminated from this years Stanley Cup Playoffs.
For Nabakov it was his second shut out in the playoffs this season as he leads the Sharks with outstanding goaltending. The unusually quiet Pepsi Centre crowd sat back and watched their Avalanche play a better game than the previous two efforts this series, but yet it wasn’t enough to capture a win. Vincent Damphousse put in the winning goal halfway through the third period, deflating the crowd further and taking all steam out of the Avalanche bench.
Holding the Sharks to 17 shots wasn’t enough on this night, as Nabakov shut the door, until Damphousse capitalized on his lucky break, banking the winning shot off of Aebischer into the net.
All that seems to be left now in this series is to see if Colorado can avoid being eliminated in four straight. There seems little chance of them being capable of winning four in a row to advance this year. They now have a choice, they can bow out in four and await the media onslaught or drag things out a few more days before facing the expected critical reviews of the season that was supposed to be, but isn’t going to be.
The loaded line up provided for Tony Granato at the start of the season was expected to challenge if not win the Cup. Through the regular season the sputtered and stalled. Featuring that season ending crash where they fell down the standings in the final month of action. They managed to put away a rather old and tired looking Dallas team but against these Sharks they just haven’t performed.
San Jose has out skated, out hit, outscored and of course totally dominated the goaltending in the series. That is why they sit 3 games up and fully in control of things. Colorado look lost on the ice, unsure as to how they should handle the faster and more physical Sharks.
On Wednesday night this most disappointing of seasons will most likely come to an end for Colorado fans. The newspapers and call in shows are probably already ahead of the pack, in dissecting what went wrong. A season that offered up so much promise in September is now crashing in disappointment before the end of April. Pierre Lacroix has a bit of work ahead of him, a lineup that features the likes of a Sakic, Forsberg, Kariya, Foote, Hejduk and Blake should not be floundering like they have in this series.
One thing is certain, Head coaching resumes will be flying into the Avalanche offices right after the post series handshakes, Pierre should start wondering if the GM resumes are arriving as well!
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)