On Tuesday night, the Hurricanes had tons of power play opportunities against the visiting Islanders. Unfortunately, this actually was their demise in the game. They gave up three shorthanded goals in the game, including TWO ON THE SAME POWER PLAY!
If you give up a shorthanded goal, you deserve to lose the game. If you give up three, well, I just don't know.
There's no excuse at all for that kind of thing.
Carolina managed to register forty-some odd shots on goal. Whoopty doo. Three of them found the back of the net.
Despite stinking up their own barn, Carolina managed to fight and claw their way back into it, and were down by just one goal with about five minutes to play. A power play opportunity came up, and they were unable to cash in. Later, the Isles got an insurance marker, then later again they got an empty-net goal.
The final tally was 6-3, but Carolina had a couple of excellent chances to tie the game at four late in the third. They didn't deserve it, though.
Carolina won't play again until after the All-Star break, which means that Washington will use up some of its four games in hand. They presently sit four points behind Carolina in the Southeast division.
I imagine they will be working the power play units very hard in practice. Maybe they'll abandon the five-forward power play system.
Eric Staal will be in Atlanta playing in the ASG and participating in the skills competition. Last year, he crushed the accuracy contest.
The rest of the boys need to go somewhere and do something that has nothing to do with hockey. Something fun. After that, they need to have some very hard practices before resuming play on the 29th against the Rangers.
Showing posts with label power play. Show all posts
Showing posts with label power play. Show all posts
Wednesday, January 23, 2008
Thursday, January 03, 2008
Carolina loses game, Ladd, Walker
On Wednesday night, the Hurricanes played a gritty game against the Thrashers which resulted in a 5-4 overtime loss. There were some good things and some bad things. Then the injuries.
Carolina converted two of seven power play chances. This is a good thing. Eric Staal and Erik Cole each notched power play tallies. These guys need to be Carolina's best players, and they were both good on Wednesday. Just not good enough.
The bad and the ugly was that Carolina's penalty kill, already the worst in the league, got worse. The Canes only committed two penalties during the game, and they surrendered two power play goals. This is completely unacceptable. Maid Marian Hossa's game winning power play goal in overtime was a case of too much time and space. It was an easy goal. However, Ilya Kovalchuk scored the goal of the night. Perhaps the goal of the month. While on the power play, he took the puck coast to coast and beat Cam Ward very easily with a phenomenal and beautiful individual effort. He's leading the league with 33 goals, and this one was a textbook example of "highlight reel goal". I'm still kinda dazed by it.
The good things are that Erik Cole scored a goal at home. It was the first time he's done that all season. Eric Staal continued to pour on the points. His two points on the game put him at 37 (21/16) for the season. He won't finish anywhere near the 100 (45/55) that he had in the year of the Cup, but he's continuing to play at an elite level. He's got 10 (6/4) points in his last 9 games, which is more like the Eric Staal that we know than the guy who went four game pointless streak and a six game goalless streak in November.
Andrew Ladd had surgery today for his eye. He'll be out for a couple of weeks. The Canes were already looking like a MASH unit, but when you add Ladd and Scott Walker (7-10 games, knee) to the already big list, they look awful. Carolina should be making a few callups from Albany. I imagine Nolan will be recalled along with Ryan Bayda. Or Keith Aucoin. For more on the injuries, read Luke's article in the N&O.
In Wednesday's game, Carolina also got even strength goals from Andrew Ladd and Ray Whitney. They had to battle back from down 3-1, and 4-3 to force overtime. They should feel good about accomplishing something on the power play. They should feel good about finding something when their backs were against the wall. They should feel horrible about the penalty kill. They should feel horrible about committing a penalty in overtime. Cam Ward should feel awful about giving up five goals on just 14 shots. They should not have lost this game, but they did. The one standings point shouldn't be a consolation, but rather a scarlet letter.
The same two teams will kick it in the Philips Place Arena on Friday night. There will be a lot of different faces on the Carolina bench, including goaltender Michael Leighton, who has been called up from Albany following the waiving of Johnny Crackers
Carolina converted two of seven power play chances. This is a good thing. Eric Staal and Erik Cole each notched power play tallies. These guys need to be Carolina's best players, and they were both good on Wednesday. Just not good enough.
The bad and the ugly was that Carolina's penalty kill, already the worst in the league, got worse. The Canes only committed two penalties during the game, and they surrendered two power play goals. This is completely unacceptable. Maid Marian Hossa's game winning power play goal in overtime was a case of too much time and space. It was an easy goal. However, Ilya Kovalchuk scored the goal of the night. Perhaps the goal of the month. While on the power play, he took the puck coast to coast and beat Cam Ward very easily with a phenomenal and beautiful individual effort. He's leading the league with 33 goals, and this one was a textbook example of "highlight reel goal". I'm still kinda dazed by it.
The good things are that Erik Cole scored a goal at home. It was the first time he's done that all season. Eric Staal continued to pour on the points. His two points on the game put him at 37 (21/16) for the season. He won't finish anywhere near the 100 (45/55) that he had in the year of the Cup, but he's continuing to play at an elite level. He's got 10 (6/4) points in his last 9 games, which is more like the Eric Staal that we know than the guy who went four game pointless streak and a six game goalless streak in November.
Andrew Ladd had surgery today for his eye. He'll be out for a couple of weeks. The Canes were already looking like a MASH unit, but when you add Ladd and Scott Walker (7-10 games, knee) to the already big list, they look awful. Carolina should be making a few callups from Albany. I imagine Nolan will be recalled along with Ryan Bayda. Or Keith Aucoin. For more on the injuries, read Luke's article in the N&O.
In Wednesday's game, Carolina also got even strength goals from Andrew Ladd and Ray Whitney. They had to battle back from down 3-1, and 4-3 to force overtime. They should feel good about accomplishing something on the power play. They should feel good about finding something when their backs were against the wall. They should feel horrible about the penalty kill. They should feel horrible about committing a penalty in overtime. Cam Ward should feel awful about giving up five goals on just 14 shots. They should not have lost this game, but they did. The one standings point shouldn't be a consolation, but rather a scarlet letter.
The same two teams will kick it in the Philips Place Arena on Friday night. There will be a lot of different faces on the Carolina bench, including goaltender Michael Leighton, who has been called up from Albany following the waiving of Johnny Crackers
Saturday, October 20, 2007
Canes lose shootout, Walker
On Friday night, the Hurricanes traveled to Pittsburgh for the fifth of six straight road games. They should have won in regulation, but by the end of the night, they were just happy to get out of there alive. The one standings point earned by losing in the shootout was just a bonus.
Carolina got on the board very early. There was an early penalty, and Carolina was employing the five forward PP unit (Cullen, Whitney, Brind'Amour, Hamilton, Stillman). Ray Whitney slapped one in from above the left circle, beating Dany Sabourin high on the glove side, just under the crossbar. Matt Cullen and Rod Brind'Amour assisted on the power play goal.
Petr Sykora knotted it up at 18:58 on a really nifty move right in front of Cam Ward's cage. Sidney Crosby's wraparound attempt was foiled, but Sykora jumped on the rebound and backhanded it in. It was a very nifty play that beat Ward cleanly high on the glove side. Crosby and The Recchin' Ball got the helpers.
At 3:57 of the second, Trevor Letowski potted his first goal of the young season. Sabourin had just made a dandy of a save on a Brind'Amour/Williams breakaway, but he allowed the rebound to go into the low slot area. First, The Dude attempted a wrister from the forehand that was again blocked, but he recovered the rebound and backhanded it in. On that play, Sabourin had been knocked down and there could well have been a Goaltender Interference call, but I guess the contact wasn't deemed to be significant enough, or the referees thought that Rod Brind'Amour had been shoved into the crease area.
At 15:20, Viva gave the Canes a 3-1 lead, and it looked like the visitors were on their way to a nice win. Williams corralled a loose puck in neutral ice, then entered the Penguins zone with two Pens in front of him, three right behind him and no Hurricanes players anywhere near. From the high slot, he just put one on net, and it must have surprised the goaltender, because he was beaten badly by it. Again, high on the glove side. It looked like he never saw it. It was an unassisted goal for Williams.
The rest of the game did not go so well.
Soon after the Williams goal, Scott Walker dropped to his knees in front of the Carolina bench area and appeared to be woozy. There was no contact by any player directly preceding his collapse, but there was speculation that it was a delayed reaction to a collision with Jarkko Ruutu earlier in the game. At first it was confusing, then worrisome, then scary. He stayed there on his knees for several moments, obviously having difficulty moving and breathing. In addition to the entire Hurricanes medical staff, members of the Penguins staff were tending to him. It got even scarier when a stretcher was brought out. Ultimately, he left the ice the same way Erik Cole left that very same ice back in March of 2006. One arm dangling, bent over, gliding (not striding). Not exactly "under his own power".
Walker was held in a Pittsburgh hospital, and according to a team spokesman, x-rays and CT scans were "clear". We still don't know much about it, but the team is referring to Walker's injury as a "torso injury". Some speculation is that it might have something to do with some cartilage. Although Walker traveled with the team to Philadelphia, he is in "a great deal of pain", and will not play.
As if that wasn't enough of a bad break, Carolina got another at 17:54 of the second. The Pens were going hard to the net, and Adam Hall's backhand wrister from close range was kicked aside by Ward. Justin Williams was there to gather the puck, but unfortunately, he did his impersonation of Bryan McCabe, and he put it in his own net instead of directing it to the corner. Officially, it was Hall, with assists from Ruutu and Maxime Talbot. Unofficially, it was Williams committing the Tevvy.
Before Carolina could regroup, or even limp into the locker room with a one goal lead, Sykora made it all even. During a five-on-three power play, Sergei Gonchar unleashed a bomb from the high slot. Sykora was there to tuck in the rebound from just off the right post. Game tied. Gonchar and Sidney Crosby with the helpers.
Nothing in the third.
Pittsburgh elected to go first in the shootout.
Eric Christensen scored.
Matt Cullen scored.
Petr Sykora scored.
Jeff Hamilton scored a really nasty one.
Sidney Crosby scored.
Ray Whitney put the puck right in Sabourin's glove.
The "official" three stars went to Justin Williams (third), Sidney Crosby (second) and Petr Sykora (first). I don't see it that way. Both goaltenders played very well, and both had to make some circus-style saves. Especially Sabourin. That shouldn't go unnoticed.
The RBH three stars:
THIRD STAR Justin Williams, CAR --- 1 goal, 1 assist (plus a Tevvy)
SECOND STAR Dany Sabourin, PIT --- 32 saves, win.
FIRST STAR Petr Sykora, PIT --- 2 goals (plus a successful shootout attempt).
Although Carolina lost a key player for an indeterminant amount of time, and they didn't win the game, they still emerged with a point. Also, a positive thing that can be taken away from this game is that the Canes have already had twice as many successful shootout attempts (2) as they did all of last season (1). Jeff Hamilton proved to us why the Canes brought him here. His shootout goal was a thing of beauty.
Pittsburgh travels to Washington tonight. Carolina travels to Philly. 7:30. No TV.
More details about tonight's matchup later. Plus, more about the "house of horrors" that Mellon Arena has become.
Carolina got on the board very early. There was an early penalty, and Carolina was employing the five forward PP unit (Cullen, Whitney, Brind'Amour, Hamilton, Stillman). Ray Whitney slapped one in from above the left circle, beating Dany Sabourin high on the glove side, just under the crossbar. Matt Cullen and Rod Brind'Amour assisted on the power play goal.
Petr Sykora knotted it up at 18:58 on a really nifty move right in front of Cam Ward's cage. Sidney Crosby's wraparound attempt was foiled, but Sykora jumped on the rebound and backhanded it in. It was a very nifty play that beat Ward cleanly high on the glove side. Crosby and The Recchin' Ball got the helpers.
At 3:57 of the second, Trevor Letowski potted his first goal of the young season. Sabourin had just made a dandy of a save on a Brind'Amour/Williams breakaway, but he allowed the rebound to go into the low slot area. First, The Dude attempted a wrister from the forehand that was again blocked, but he recovered the rebound and backhanded it in. On that play, Sabourin had been knocked down and there could well have been a Goaltender Interference call, but I guess the contact wasn't deemed to be significant enough, or the referees thought that Rod Brind'Amour had been shoved into the crease area.
At 15:20, Viva gave the Canes a 3-1 lead, and it looked like the visitors were on their way to a nice win. Williams corralled a loose puck in neutral ice, then entered the Penguins zone with two Pens in front of him, three right behind him and no Hurricanes players anywhere near. From the high slot, he just put one on net, and it must have surprised the goaltender, because he was beaten badly by it. Again, high on the glove side. It looked like he never saw it. It was an unassisted goal for Williams.
The rest of the game did not go so well.
Soon after the Williams goal, Scott Walker dropped to his knees in front of the Carolina bench area and appeared to be woozy. There was no contact by any player directly preceding his collapse, but there was speculation that it was a delayed reaction to a collision with Jarkko Ruutu earlier in the game. At first it was confusing, then worrisome, then scary. He stayed there on his knees for several moments, obviously having difficulty moving and breathing. In addition to the entire Hurricanes medical staff, members of the Penguins staff were tending to him. It got even scarier when a stretcher was brought out. Ultimately, he left the ice the same way Erik Cole left that very same ice back in March of 2006. One arm dangling, bent over, gliding (not striding). Not exactly "under his own power".
Walker was held in a Pittsburgh hospital, and according to a team spokesman, x-rays and CT scans were "clear". We still don't know much about it, but the team is referring to Walker's injury as a "torso injury". Some speculation is that it might have something to do with some cartilage. Although Walker traveled with the team to Philadelphia, he is in "a great deal of pain", and will not play.
As if that wasn't enough of a bad break, Carolina got another at 17:54 of the second. The Pens were going hard to the net, and Adam Hall's backhand wrister from close range was kicked aside by Ward. Justin Williams was there to gather the puck, but unfortunately, he did his impersonation of Bryan McCabe, and he put it in his own net instead of directing it to the corner. Officially, it was Hall, with assists from Ruutu and Maxime Talbot. Unofficially, it was Williams committing the Tevvy.
Before Carolina could regroup, or even limp into the locker room with a one goal lead, Sykora made it all even. During a five-on-three power play, Sergei Gonchar unleashed a bomb from the high slot. Sykora was there to tuck in the rebound from just off the right post. Game tied. Gonchar and Sidney Crosby with the helpers.
Nothing in the third.
Pittsburgh elected to go first in the shootout.
Eric Christensen scored.
Matt Cullen scored.
Petr Sykora scored.
Jeff Hamilton scored a really nasty one.
Sidney Crosby scored.
Ray Whitney put the puck right in Sabourin's glove.
The "official" three stars went to Justin Williams (third), Sidney Crosby (second) and Petr Sykora (first). I don't see it that way. Both goaltenders played very well, and both had to make some circus-style saves. Especially Sabourin. That shouldn't go unnoticed.
The RBH three stars:
THIRD STAR Justin Williams, CAR --- 1 goal, 1 assist (plus a Tevvy)
SECOND STAR Dany Sabourin, PIT --- 32 saves, win.
FIRST STAR Petr Sykora, PIT --- 2 goals (plus a successful shootout attempt).
Although Carolina lost a key player for an indeterminant amount of time, and they didn't win the game, they still emerged with a point. Also, a positive thing that can be taken away from this game is that the Canes have already had twice as many successful shootout attempts (2) as they did all of last season (1). Jeff Hamilton proved to us why the Canes brought him here. His shootout goal was a thing of beauty.
Pittsburgh travels to Washington tonight. Carolina travels to Philly. 7:30. No TV.
More details about tonight's matchup later. Plus, more about the "house of horrors" that Mellon Arena has become.
Saturday, October 13, 2007
Canes outlast Habs 3-1.
Last Wednesday, the Canadiens spoiled Carolina's home opener. On Saturday night, Carolina returned the favor with a 3-1 win. Carolina is now 3-1-0 on the six game road trip. They will have the next five days off before playing Friday in Pittsburgh and Saturday in Philly.
Christopher Higgins got the Habs off and running just 1:12 into the game. After a failed attempt by Carolina to clear the defensive zone, Montréal had a great chance and they cashed in on it. Saku Koivu had the lone assist.
At 15:52, Demolition Derby Stillman tied the score at the tail end of a five-on-three power play. He was on the doorstep and easily tucked in a rebound of a Rod Brind'Amour shot. Eric Staal got the secondary assist.
During the period, Carolina's penalty kill looked really good, and they even had a few quality shorthanded chances. Better, though, was Cristobal Huet. He very calmly and adeptly handled all but one of the shots fired his way.
The second period was more of the same. Carolina had the majority of the scoring chances, and Huet was incredible. At roughly 13:00 of the second, he made a remarkable save on Eric Staal, who had a beautiful give-and-go scoring chance on the front porch.
Carolina chinked Huet's armor at 19:26 at the end of a power play. While utilizing the five-forward system, Erik Cole found Matt Cullen all alone in the slot for a quick shot that made it to the back of the net. It was Carolina's second power play goal of the night, and their seventh in the last three games.
In the third period, the home team came to life and they had the majority of the scoring chances. After mustering just four shots in each of the first two periods, the Canadiens fired 16 shots on Cam Ward in the third stanza. Meanwhile, they cracked down defensively, and only allowed the Canes 8 SOG in the third after allowing 13 in the first and 17 in the second.
At around 15:00 of the third, Huet took a sure goal away from Scott Walker, keeping the Habs in the game.
On the other end, Ward made dazzling save after dazzling save while Frantisek Kaberle, Bret Hedican and Nic Wallin "manned up" in front of him. Hedican was especially good, blocking a ton of shots. There is a marked difference in Ward's mobility this season, and one has to assume that it comes from his 20-pound weight loss and his attention to diet and training over the summer.
At 19:44, Chad "Sharpie" LaRose finally got a goal. Sure, it was an empty net goal, but they all look like highlight reel goals in the boxscore. He has worked exceptionally hard this season, and has been denied by posts and crossbars, and impossible saves. It's about time he got rewarded for his effort with an easy goal.
FSN South gave the three stars to Matt Cullen (third), Cristobal Huet (second) and Cam Ward (first). The "official" three stars went to Bret Hedican (third), Matt Cullen (second) and Cristobal Huet (first). I see it a little differently. The RBH three stars:
THIRD STAR Bret Hedican, CAR --- 6 blocked shots
SECOND STAR Cristobal Huet, MTL --- 35 saves
FIRST STAR Cam Ward, CAR --- 23 saves (16 in the 3rd), win
Without the Frenchman, this game would have been a runaway for Carolina. Huet deserves high marks for his heroic effort.
With help from his friends, Ward was able to win his fourth straight game, and now has a GAA of 1.80 and a save percentage of .943. With four wins, he stands behind only Martin Gerber in that category. And oh yeah, he beat Gerber on Thursday night.
Carolina has now won eight straight games in theMolson Bell Centre, dating back to the 03-04 season.
Tampa and Washington both lost tonight, which means that Carolina has increased their Southeast Division lead to three points. Obviously, it's WAY too early to think about playoff pictures, but the boys are off to a very good start.
Christopher Higgins got the Habs off and running just 1:12 into the game. After a failed attempt by Carolina to clear the defensive zone, Montréal had a great chance and they cashed in on it. Saku Koivu had the lone assist.
At 15:52, Demolition Derby Stillman tied the score at the tail end of a five-on-three power play. He was on the doorstep and easily tucked in a rebound of a Rod Brind'Amour shot. Eric Staal got the secondary assist.
During the period, Carolina's penalty kill looked really good, and they even had a few quality shorthanded chances. Better, though, was Cristobal Huet. He very calmly and adeptly handled all but one of the shots fired his way.
The second period was more of the same. Carolina had the majority of the scoring chances, and Huet was incredible. At roughly 13:00 of the second, he made a remarkable save on Eric Staal, who had a beautiful give-and-go scoring chance on the front porch.
Carolina chinked Huet's armor at 19:26 at the end of a power play. While utilizing the five-forward system, Erik Cole found Matt Cullen all alone in the slot for a quick shot that made it to the back of the net. It was Carolina's second power play goal of the night, and their seventh in the last three games.
In the third period, the home team came to life and they had the majority of the scoring chances. After mustering just four shots in each of the first two periods, the Canadiens fired 16 shots on Cam Ward in the third stanza. Meanwhile, they cracked down defensively, and only allowed the Canes 8 SOG in the third after allowing 13 in the first and 17 in the second.
At around 15:00 of the third, Huet took a sure goal away from Scott Walker, keeping the Habs in the game.
On the other end, Ward made dazzling save after dazzling save while Frantisek Kaberle, Bret Hedican and Nic Wallin "manned up" in front of him. Hedican was especially good, blocking a ton of shots. There is a marked difference in Ward's mobility this season, and one has to assume that it comes from his 20-pound weight loss and his attention to diet and training over the summer.
At 19:44, Chad "Sharpie" LaRose finally got a goal. Sure, it was an empty net goal, but they all look like highlight reel goals in the boxscore. He has worked exceptionally hard this season, and has been denied by posts and crossbars, and impossible saves. It's about time he got rewarded for his effort with an easy goal.
FSN South gave the three stars to Matt Cullen (third), Cristobal Huet (second) and Cam Ward (first). The "official" three stars went to Bret Hedican (third), Matt Cullen (second) and Cristobal Huet (first). I see it a little differently. The RBH three stars:
THIRD STAR Bret Hedican, CAR --- 6 blocked shots
SECOND STAR Cristobal Huet, MTL --- 35 saves
FIRST STAR Cam Ward, CAR --- 23 saves (16 in the 3rd), win
Without the Frenchman, this game would have been a runaway for Carolina. Huet deserves high marks for his heroic effort.
With help from his friends, Ward was able to win his fourth straight game, and now has a GAA of 1.80 and a save percentage of .943. With four wins, he stands behind only Martin Gerber in that category. And oh yeah, he beat Gerber on Thursday night.
Carolina has now won eight straight games in the
Tampa and Washington both lost tonight, which means that Carolina has increased their Southeast Division lead to three points. Obviously, it's WAY too early to think about playoff pictures, but the boys are off to a very good start.
Sunday, May 13, 2007
Ottawa takes 2-0 lead, heads home
On Saturday night, the Senators stunned the Sabres by winning again in the HSBC Arena. Maybe "stunned" isn't the right word, but either way the Sens own a commanding 2-0 lead in this series. Buffalo is no longer assured anything. If the Sens play their cards right, they can wrap up the series with two wins at Scotiabank Place.
I say "stunned" isn't the right word because perhaps the Sabres weren't. They played pretty much the same way they've played all playoff season. It was good enough to beat the Islanders and it was good enough to get by the Rangers but so far it hasn't been enough to even win a home game against the Sens.
This one was a little different, though. The home team got off to a two goal lead in the first period, but it completely lost it after that. Ottawa scored three unanswered goals to take a 3-2 lead which held up until five seconds remained in regulation. The third of those Senators goals was the result of a questionable five-on-three. This would prove to be a major point of contention, along with a disallowed Sabres goal.
Throughout the game, and mostly in the third period, the Sabres looked to be skating through porridge. Too frequently, one guy would make a dazzling move to gain the zone, only to have no teammates and four Senators to deal with.
Just like that game against the Rangers, the Sabres got a miraculous closing-seconds goal to force overtime. Before it was Chris Drury. This time it was the other Captain. This time was also different in that Buffalo couldn't parlay that momentum into a win.
In the first overtime period, the Sabres had a great chance to win it. Joe Corvo was sent off for interference, but the power play was awful. During that sequence, the Senators had two quality shorthanded chances and the Sabres had zero chances of their own. This has been the recurring theme. In the second overtime period, Corvo turned out to be the hero by blasting a blueline shot past Ryan Miller, just off a faceoff in the Sabres zone.
In the post game presser, the questions for Lindy Ruff were pretty much about the power play and how they were going to make adjustments to get it going. Instead of addressing that, he pointed out the five-on-three, which led to a goal for the Senators.
For the record, although it's true that Ottawa has had two five-on-three situations in this series, Buffalo has had more overall power plays and has failed to convert. Ottawa is 4-10 in power play situations, while Buffalo is 0-12.
Jason Spezza had three assists and was named second star of the game. He now leads all scorers with 17 (6/11) post-season points.
Ducks and Wings are underway right now.
I say "stunned" isn't the right word because perhaps the Sabres weren't. They played pretty much the same way they've played all playoff season. It was good enough to beat the Islanders and it was good enough to get by the Rangers but so far it hasn't been enough to even win a home game against the Sens.
This one was a little different, though. The home team got off to a two goal lead in the first period, but it completely lost it after that. Ottawa scored three unanswered goals to take a 3-2 lead which held up until five seconds remained in regulation. The third of those Senators goals was the result of a questionable five-on-three. This would prove to be a major point of contention, along with a disallowed Sabres goal.
Throughout the game, and mostly in the third period, the Sabres looked to be skating through porridge. Too frequently, one guy would make a dazzling move to gain the zone, only to have no teammates and four Senators to deal with.
Just like that game against the Rangers, the Sabres got a miraculous closing-seconds goal to force overtime. Before it was Chris Drury. This time it was the other Captain. This time was also different in that Buffalo couldn't parlay that momentum into a win.
In the first overtime period, the Sabres had a great chance to win it. Joe Corvo was sent off for interference, but the power play was awful. During that sequence, the Senators had two quality shorthanded chances and the Sabres had zero chances of their own. This has been the recurring theme. In the second overtime period, Corvo turned out to be the hero by blasting a blueline shot past Ryan Miller, just off a faceoff in the Sabres zone.
In the post game presser, the questions for Lindy Ruff were pretty much about the power play and how they were going to make adjustments to get it going. Instead of addressing that, he pointed out the five-on-three, which led to a goal for the Senators.
For the record, although it's true that Ottawa has had two five-on-three situations in this series, Buffalo has had more overall power plays and has failed to convert. Ottawa is 4-10 in power play situations, while Buffalo is 0-12.
Jason Spezza had three assists and was named second star of the game. He now leads all scorers with 17 (6/11) post-season points.
Ducks and Wings are underway right now.
Saturday, February 17, 2007
Canes right ship, defeat Habs
On Saturday night, the Canes went to the Bell Centre, and for the seventh time in a row, they emerged victorious. This time it was 5-3.
What a difference 48 hours makes! After Thursday's game, I lamented among other things, a terrible performance by special teams. Tonight, they were golden. The Canes had only two power play opportunities and converted them both. They were shorthanded three times, and killed all of them off. Not only that, but they scored a shorthanded goal. Whereas the special teams got an F- the other night, they got an A+ tonight.
All of the Carolina goals were kind of oddball. The third more so than the rest, but I'll get to that in a second.
During a four-on-four sequence following a fight the Habs got the first goal of the game from Sheldon Souray at 17:36. Tomas Plekanec and Mark Streit got the helpers.
During the first intermission, the team had a closed-door meeting and no interviews were given on tv. I'm not sure what was said, but whatever it was worked.
Off the opening second period faceoff, Michael Ryder was given the gate for hooking, and they were made to pay for it. Rod Brind'Amour found the puck on his stick as he camped out on the left post. He neatly pulled it to his backhand and lifted it high to Aebischer's stick side. Erik Cole and Eric Staal got the assists at 1:18 on the power play goal.
Ten minutes later, the tone changing goal. The Czech Condor was in the box for holding, but the Habs ended up hurting themselves. Mike Commodore made a fine defensive play in the Carolina zone causing a turnover and a two-on-one for Craig Adams and Chad LaRose. Craigasaurus Rex took the puck to the outside and fired a shot from the right circle. Aebischer got a pad on it, but Sharpie was there to knock it in out of mid-air. Officially, LaRose from Adams shorthanded at 11:30 of the second. It was just the third goal of the season for the hard working LaRose and just the fifth helper for Adams. It wasn't the game winner. It was, though --at least in my mind, the play of the game.
Barely a minute later, the Habs tied it up. Radik Bonk was on the doorstep to tip in a shot from Steve Begin. Mike Johnson got the secondary assist.
At 19:26 of the second came another crucial moment in the game. Mike Johnson ran Cam Ward and there was a delayed penalty. For a second, Tim Gleason considered giving Johnson the business, but thought better of it and wisely let the play run its course. As soon as the penalty began, the Canes got fruit from it. And it was the aforementioned extreme oddball goal. Try to follow me here.
Eric Staal fired a shot from above the left circle that went wide of Aebischer. Or perhaps it was tipped wide. At any rate, David Aebischer lost his stick after Micheal Komaserik swatted at the puck and ended up hitting Abby's stick. Off the end wall, Ray Whitney found the puck behind the cage. Again, Rod Brind'Amour was parked on the left post. Whitney made an amazing pass that went between Komaserik's legs right to Brind'Amour. From there, it was kind of like his first goal. He pulled it to his backhand, then lifted it over Aebischer. The stickless Abby sprawled out at the last second and the puck actually glanced off the top of his helmet and eventually went top shelf. He moaned a little to the refs about being interfered with, but it was his own teammate who knocked his stick out of his hand. Officially, it was a power play goal by Brind'Amour from Whitney and Staal at 19:50 of the second. Heading into the room, the Canes were up 3-2.
When leading after 40 minutes, the Canes were 20-0. Make it 21-0.
At 12:42 of the third, Erik "Hab Killa" Cole got what would turn out to be the game winner on a tremendous individual effort. After the Habs had partially cleared the puck following some prolonged pressure by the Canes, Cole burned them badly. The Canes brought it back in, and Cole used Mathieu Dandenault as a screen for his shot. He fired it between Dandenault's wickets from above the right circle, and Aebischer never had a chance. Mike Commodore and Glen Wesley got the assists.
Guy Carbonneau waited too long, in my opinion, to pull his goaltender. Then he did it wrong. He didn't insert the extra attacker until about 1:15 remained, and he immediately had to pay for it. Instead of waiting for his team to get the puck deep, he pulled the keeper after they had cleared their own zone. Eric Staal made a fine play at center ice to steal the puck and fire into the empty net for the security at 18:47. Aebischer wasn't even off the ice yet, but way too far out of net to turn back. A poor coaching choice and poor execution on the pulling of the keeper. That made the score 5-2, but it actually made a difference.
Tomas Plekanec was awarded a penalty shot at 19:07, and he made a nifty move to convert it and make the game a little closer.
5-3 was the final.
Everyone played really well, and I was pleasantly surprised that Justin Willams AND Bret Hedican played. It's hard to pick stars of the game when everyone played so well.
The "official" three stars went to Cam Ward (third), Bret Hedican (second) and Rod Brind'Amour (first). The FSN South stars went to Ward, Cole and Brind'Amour. I can't say those guys don't deserve it, but I feel the need to give a shout to CrAdams, who had the shorthanded assist and made some really fine defensive plays on the penalty kill.
The RBH three stars are a little different:
THIRD STAR Craig Adams, CAR -- 1 assist
SECOND STAR Cam Ward, CAR -- 42 saves
FIRST STAR Eric Staal, CAR -- 1 goal, 2 assists
The Thrashers lost in regulation, and Bolts lost in overtime. These are both good for the Canes. Now Tampa and Atlanta are tied with 69 points. Tampa is in first by virtue of having a game in hand. Carolina is in third place, just two points back with 67. Tuesday's home game against the Dirty Birds will be HUGE.
What a difference 48 hours makes! After Thursday's game, I lamented among other things, a terrible performance by special teams. Tonight, they were golden. The Canes had only two power play opportunities and converted them both. They were shorthanded three times, and killed all of them off. Not only that, but they scored a shorthanded goal. Whereas the special teams got an F- the other night, they got an A+ tonight.
All of the Carolina goals were kind of oddball. The third more so than the rest, but I'll get to that in a second.
During a four-on-four sequence following a fight the Habs got the first goal of the game from Sheldon Souray at 17:36. Tomas Plekanec and Mark Streit got the helpers.
During the first intermission, the team had a closed-door meeting and no interviews were given on tv. I'm not sure what was said, but whatever it was worked.
Off the opening second period faceoff, Michael Ryder was given the gate for hooking, and they were made to pay for it. Rod Brind'Amour found the puck on his stick as he camped out on the left post. He neatly pulled it to his backhand and lifted it high to Aebischer's stick side. Erik Cole and Eric Staal got the assists at 1:18 on the power play goal.
Ten minutes later, the tone changing goal. The Czech Condor was in the box for holding, but the Habs ended up hurting themselves. Mike Commodore made a fine defensive play in the Carolina zone causing a turnover and a two-on-one for Craig Adams and Chad LaRose. Craigasaurus Rex took the puck to the outside and fired a shot from the right circle. Aebischer got a pad on it, but Sharpie was there to knock it in out of mid-air. Officially, LaRose from Adams shorthanded at 11:30 of the second. It was just the third goal of the season for the hard working LaRose and just the fifth helper for Adams. It wasn't the game winner. It was, though --at least in my mind, the play of the game.
Barely a minute later, the Habs tied it up. Radik Bonk was on the doorstep to tip in a shot from Steve Begin. Mike Johnson got the secondary assist.
At 19:26 of the second came another crucial moment in the game. Mike Johnson ran Cam Ward and there was a delayed penalty. For a second, Tim Gleason considered giving Johnson the business, but thought better of it and wisely let the play run its course. As soon as the penalty began, the Canes got fruit from it. And it was the aforementioned extreme oddball goal. Try to follow me here.
Eric Staal fired a shot from above the left circle that went wide of Aebischer. Or perhaps it was tipped wide. At any rate, David Aebischer lost his stick after Micheal Komaserik swatted at the puck and ended up hitting Abby's stick. Off the end wall, Ray Whitney found the puck behind the cage. Again, Rod Brind'Amour was parked on the left post. Whitney made an amazing pass that went between Komaserik's legs right to Brind'Amour. From there, it was kind of like his first goal. He pulled it to his backhand, then lifted it over Aebischer. The stickless Abby sprawled out at the last second and the puck actually glanced off the top of his helmet and eventually went top shelf. He moaned a little to the refs about being interfered with, but it was his own teammate who knocked his stick out of his hand. Officially, it was a power play goal by Brind'Amour from Whitney and Staal at 19:50 of the second. Heading into the room, the Canes were up 3-2.
When leading after 40 minutes, the Canes were 20-0. Make it 21-0.
At 12:42 of the third, Erik "Hab Killa" Cole got what would turn out to be the game winner on a tremendous individual effort. After the Habs had partially cleared the puck following some prolonged pressure by the Canes, Cole burned them badly. The Canes brought it back in, and Cole used Mathieu Dandenault as a screen for his shot. He fired it between Dandenault's wickets from above the right circle, and Aebischer never had a chance. Mike Commodore and Glen Wesley got the assists.
Guy Carbonneau waited too long, in my opinion, to pull his goaltender. Then he did it wrong. He didn't insert the extra attacker until about 1:15 remained, and he immediately had to pay for it. Instead of waiting for his team to get the puck deep, he pulled the keeper after they had cleared their own zone. Eric Staal made a fine play at center ice to steal the puck and fire into the empty net for the security at 18:47. Aebischer wasn't even off the ice yet, but way too far out of net to turn back. A poor coaching choice and poor execution on the pulling of the keeper. That made the score 5-2, but it actually made a difference.
Tomas Plekanec was awarded a penalty shot at 19:07, and he made a nifty move to convert it and make the game a little closer.
5-3 was the final.
Everyone played really well, and I was pleasantly surprised that Justin Willams AND Bret Hedican played. It's hard to pick stars of the game when everyone played so well.
The "official" three stars went to Cam Ward (third), Bret Hedican (second) and Rod Brind'Amour (first). The FSN South stars went to Ward, Cole and Brind'Amour. I can't say those guys don't deserve it, but I feel the need to give a shout to CrAdams, who had the shorthanded assist and made some really fine defensive plays on the penalty kill.
The RBH three stars are a little different:
THIRD STAR Craig Adams, CAR -- 1 assist
SECOND STAR Cam Ward, CAR -- 42 saves
FIRST STAR Eric Staal, CAR -- 1 goal, 2 assists
The Thrashers lost in regulation, and Bolts lost in overtime. These are both good for the Canes. Now Tampa and Atlanta are tied with 69 points. Tampa is in first by virtue of having a game in hand. Carolina is in third place, just two points back with 67. Tuesday's home game against the Dirty Birds will be HUGE.
Sunday, February 04, 2007
Carolina falls again
Boston Bruins -- 4
Carolina Hapless Sons of Bitches -- 3
On Saturday, the Hurricanes had a chance to snap out of a three game losing streak when the Bruins came to town. The B's were themselves in a five game skid, and are hopelessly out of contention in the Northeast Division. Instead of righting the ship against the seemingly inferior team, the Hurricanes crashed their own ship into the damn rocks, spilling all their gear into the water, where it all sunk.
Before I get into the game recap proper, I want to make one thing abundantly clear. There will be bloggers and maybe some professional writers who will say otherwise, but the game WAS NOT handed to the Bruins by the officials. Indeed there was a very questionable call made against Carolina in the overtime period, setting up the Bruins for the game-winning goal in a four-on-three situation. However, this isn't the reason the Canes lost.
The ice was in really poor shape. This is not the reason the Canes lost. Both teams had to play on that same sheet of ice.
Carolina lost the game because they were terrible on the power play. They converted only one out of 10 power play chances. Included in that, there were two lengthy back-to-back five-on-three situations. In an ideal world, you get four goals out of that, but Carolina could muster just one there. They had several other power play opportunities, and looked awful every time. The passing was bad, the shot selection was bad, the utilization of open space was bad, the line changes were bad, the "quarterbacking" was bad. It was just flat out bad. If you fail to cash in on five-on-three situations, and if you only convert 10% of power plays on home ice, you deserve to lose.
I don't wish to get into any discussions about the validity of any penalties called against the Canes. That stuff is immaterial. If they had taken care of their own opportunities, overtime wouldn't have ever existed.
In the first period, it looked like Carolina was going to take control Erik Cole looked extremely sharp in getting the home team out to a 2-0 lead. The first was a breakaway situation where he came in alone on Tim Thomas, pulled the puck to his backhand at the last second, and beat Thomas to the far side. It was Cole's 23rd and it was unassisted at 3:36 of the first..
The second Cole goal came at 18:26. Carolina had a good scoring chance from Dennis Seidenberg followed by a few rebound attempts. Finally, after a few whacks, Cole was able to go top shelf from just below the right circle. Seidenberg and Eric Staal had the assists, and it was officially a four-on-four goal.
Just a few seconds into the second stanza, Glen Murray scored for the Bruins. Like the second Cole goal, there were a ton of bodies out front, and there was a big scrum leading to the goal. PJ Axelsson and Zdeno Chara had the assists on the power play goal.
Brad Boyes knotted it up a the 19:08 mark on a beautiful and frustrating play. Boyes had served two minutes in the box, he was set free and took a long pass for a breakaway just after leaving the box. Marc Savard had the only assist.
Murray got a second goal at the 6:38 mark of the third. From the right circle, he beat Ward to give the visitors the lead. Chara and Paul Mara assisted.
With time about to run out, Rod Brind'Amour gave the Hurricanes some false hope when he scored with just 3:12 to play in regulation. This was a five-on-three. Brindy got his stick on a rebound chance from below the right circle. He fired it into a basically unguarded cage. For formality's sake, it was a five-on-three goal scored at 16:48 and assisted by Ray Whitney and Cory Stillman.
Early in the overtime period, Eric Staal was called for holding, which wasn't a popular call. It's generally understood that overtime isn't the time or place for ticky-tacky calls. With the four-on-three advantage, Chara banged one in from the right circle to give the B's the win at 1:49 of the "fourth" period. The shot clanged off the crossbar (which is at the same approximate height as Chara's shoelaces) and over Ward's left shoulder. Savard had the only helper.
The only bright side is that with the overtime loss, Carolina still gained one point. Atlanta lost in regulation.
I can't help but agree with the "official" three stars.
The RBH three stars go to:
THIRD STAR Glen Murray, BOS -- 2 goals
SECOND STAR Erik Cole, CAR -- 2 goals
FIRST STAR Zdeno Chara, BOS -- 2 assists, GWG
Carolina will travel to Montéal Monday night and will attempt to end this horrible losing skid.
Carolina Hapless Sons of Bitches -- 3
On Saturday, the Hurricanes had a chance to snap out of a three game losing streak when the Bruins came to town. The B's were themselves in a five game skid, and are hopelessly out of contention in the Northeast Division. Instead of righting the ship against the seemingly inferior team, the Hurricanes crashed their own ship into the damn rocks, spilling all their gear into the water, where it all sunk.
Before I get into the game recap proper, I want to make one thing abundantly clear. There will be bloggers and maybe some professional writers who will say otherwise, but the game WAS NOT handed to the Bruins by the officials. Indeed there was a very questionable call made against Carolina in the overtime period, setting up the Bruins for the game-winning goal in a four-on-three situation. However, this isn't the reason the Canes lost.
The ice was in really poor shape. This is not the reason the Canes lost. Both teams had to play on that same sheet of ice.
Carolina lost the game because they were terrible on the power play. They converted only one out of 10 power play chances. Included in that, there were two lengthy back-to-back five-on-three situations. In an ideal world, you get four goals out of that, but Carolina could muster just one there. They had several other power play opportunities, and looked awful every time. The passing was bad, the shot selection was bad, the utilization of open space was bad, the line changes were bad, the "quarterbacking" was bad. It was just flat out bad. If you fail to cash in on five-on-three situations, and if you only convert 10% of power plays on home ice, you deserve to lose.
I don't wish to get into any discussions about the validity of any penalties called against the Canes. That stuff is immaterial. If they had taken care of their own opportunities, overtime wouldn't have ever existed.
In the first period, it looked like Carolina was going to take control Erik Cole looked extremely sharp in getting the home team out to a 2-0 lead. The first was a breakaway situation where he came in alone on Tim Thomas, pulled the puck to his backhand at the last second, and beat Thomas to the far side. It was Cole's 23rd and it was unassisted at 3:36 of the first..
The second Cole goal came at 18:26. Carolina had a good scoring chance from Dennis Seidenberg followed by a few rebound attempts. Finally, after a few whacks, Cole was able to go top shelf from just below the right circle. Seidenberg and Eric Staal had the assists, and it was officially a four-on-four goal.
Just a few seconds into the second stanza, Glen Murray scored for the Bruins. Like the second Cole goal, there were a ton of bodies out front, and there was a big scrum leading to the goal. PJ Axelsson and Zdeno Chara had the assists on the power play goal.
Brad Boyes knotted it up a the 19:08 mark on a beautiful and frustrating play. Boyes had served two minutes in the box, he was set free and took a long pass for a breakaway just after leaving the box. Marc Savard had the only assist.
Murray got a second goal at the 6:38 mark of the third. From the right circle, he beat Ward to give the visitors the lead. Chara and Paul Mara assisted.
With time about to run out, Rod Brind'Amour gave the Hurricanes some false hope when he scored with just 3:12 to play in regulation. This was a five-on-three. Brindy got his stick on a rebound chance from below the right circle. He fired it into a basically unguarded cage. For formality's sake, it was a five-on-three goal scored at 16:48 and assisted by Ray Whitney and Cory Stillman.
Early in the overtime period, Eric Staal was called for holding, which wasn't a popular call. It's generally understood that overtime isn't the time or place for ticky-tacky calls. With the four-on-three advantage, Chara banged one in from the right circle to give the B's the win at 1:49 of the "fourth" period. The shot clanged off the crossbar (which is at the same approximate height as Chara's shoelaces) and over Ward's left shoulder. Savard had the only helper.
The only bright side is that with the overtime loss, Carolina still gained one point. Atlanta lost in regulation.
I can't help but agree with the "official" three stars.
The RBH three stars go to:
THIRD STAR Glen Murray, BOS -- 2 goals
SECOND STAR Erik Cole, CAR -- 2 goals
FIRST STAR Zdeno Chara, BOS -- 2 assists, GWG
Carolina will travel to Montéal Monday night and will attempt to end this horrible losing skid.
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