thoughts watching predators @ hawks (playoffs series 1, game 1)
- Here we go! The anthem sounded great, the puck is down and we're off!
- Whoa. Insta-penalty. Way to draw one TBrouws, on your first shift back. Should be interesting to see what the Hawks do on the PP in the next few games, I'm guessing that was a huge emphasis over the last week in practice.
- Hawks PP looking a little rusty still. Uncharacteristically sloppy pass by Tazer, weird change by Bolly, just lots of little things that could shape up. Not dismal, but could be better.
- Not sure I like that play by Madden. He was first into the zone on a 1-1, and instead of taking the shot, he spun to wait for the trailer and as a result turned it over. I think I'd have preferred him to go ahead and put it on goal, then let the trailer handle the rebound if Rinne gave one up. But there's a reason that Madden makes millions a year, and I don't.
- ANTTI-GOAL! Nice. It's always pretty when the goalie ends up in a full split like that.
- I'm liking the Hawks' scrappiness along the boards so far. They're doing a good job of winning those little battles at the half, and it's paying off with possession.
- Wow, Hoss. Keep that up and you'll shut up the idiots pretty quickly. Nice support from Tazer too.
- Antti-goal!
- I'd like to see the Hawks step it up a notch in intensity. They look like they're still getting their sea legs out there.
- Nice work by the D on dealing with that 4-2. Niemi was heads-up all the way, had eyes on it, and the defensive responsibility split shows good communication. Now if only we could have gotten a little backcheck from the forward corps to make sure that sort of thing doesn't happen too often.
- Sharpie! Oh fuck, I thought you had that. You totally should have had that. Come on, boys, solve Rinne but good. You've had too many great chances for one of these not to go in.
- Jesus, people. Quit with the turnovers. You need to be passing to each other, not to where you think someone might be in the next year, approximately. Also not to the Nashville players.
- Hossa playing like he's got something to prove. I love watching him anyway, but tonight he seems especially motivated, and holy shit has he been aggressive. That check a few minutes ago was impressive, and the two takeaways on this last offensive shift were magic.
- Well, that'll be the first. It's not really a period to be proud of, and Nashville spent a lot more time in our zone than I think is healthy, but right now scoreless is something I'll take. The Hawks need to come out in the second with a lot more fire than I'm seeing right now, and they need to work on the passing and turnovers. But it could have been worse.
- Seabsie's hair is whackadoo in his first intermission interview.
- Frame two starts with Hossa getting robbed again.
- Fourth line looking fantastic on this shift. Really scrappy, just not willing to let the Preds have an inch of ground, and taking it back every time it looked like Nashville would clear. Nice.
- FUCK YOU RINNE. Sharpie! :(
- Penalty kill time. AKA Yet Another Shortie Opportunity.
- FUCK YOU RINNE. Oh, Tazer. So, so close. You really did get robbed there.
- Now, that was a dumb penalty for Nashville to take. No reason to take that one, and the last thing the Preds need is for their last-ranked kill to have to deal with a PP.
- I am really liking the variety of shots that we're seeing on this PP. Great use of the cross-ice pass to confuse the Preds, nice puck movement and great passing accuracy. Even if they didn't score, I felt like that's the most dangerous we've seen the PP look in about ten games.
- KANER!!!!! OH FINALLY FINALLY WE SCORE!!! RINNE GAVE ONE UP ON A TERRIBLE REBOUND, AND KANER NEVER EVEN LOOKED TWICE, JUST SKATED THE THING STRAIGHT INTO THE NET!! SHARPIE DESERVES CREDIT FOR PRETTY PUCK HANDLING INTO THE ZONE ON THE ODD-MAN, AND MAN OH MAN THAT GOAL WAS A RELIEF!!! THANK GOD!!!
- Lulz, way to push Frazzle into your own goalie there, dude. Real smooth.
- I'm seeing Kane-Sharp-Bolland for an extended shift there, and I like the way it looks. Kaner's riding the mullet power off that goal, and he still looks amazing. Kid's working his ass off out there.
- Ways to know it's time for your team to change: when Sopel is outskating your entire forward corp. Jesus, Nashville, that really looked pitiful.
- Haha, Buff just sort of shrugs when Tootoo tries to fight him.
- Hossa just makes it look effortless. I don't like seeing his line out there with Sopel, though. Whenever Sopes is the trailer, he never has enough speed to take the dishes Hossa hands him and make something of it. Needs more Keith out there to support the Hoss-monster.
- ANTTI-GOAL! God, I love his little concentratey face.
- Well, end of the second. I liked this period much better than the last one. The Hawks seem to have rediscovered their brand of hockey, and the possession time looked much more tilted in a positive direction for this one. The SOG stats were also encouraging, and Rinne really was forced to make a lot of heroic saves. They keep this up, hopefully he'll cough up more. If the Hawks play like this for the rest of the sixty, I like their chances.
- Back for the third. And thank god for the third defenseman. That post is getting a workout tonight.
- fuck. Antti-goal, baby, you cannot give that sort of thing up. Keep the nerves down, it'll be okay.
- Hossa with the impressive slide-block on that kill. He looked like Hammer or something out there, wow. He really has played this game out of his mind.
- Oh Tazer. You wanted that one bad, didn't you? Keep it up, kiddo, you'll get it eventually.
- ANTTI-FUCKING-GOAL!!!
- fuck. Total defensive breakdown. That one's not on Niemi, that one's on Brouwer and Bolland. Christ, that was ugly.
- Come on, Hawks, you can still gut this one out. Come on. Here's where your grit gets tested.
- Sigh. The Hawks need something here, a check, a fight, something to light a fire under them. They're not playing fiery hockey here. Come on, boys, pull this one out.
- fuck. empty netter for the loss. goddamn.
Postgame thoughts:
- Obviously no one likes to lose at all in the post-season, but somehow I couldn't get too worked up about this one. The Hawks looked like what they were: a team that was rusty after not playing for a week. They came out looking better in the second, and aside from that one TERRIBLY shitty shift where Nashville scored on the complete breakdown in coverage, the third looked pretty close. So no one needs to reach for the torches yet, this team will be just fine. It would have been nice to see them win the first of the series, but mostly I just wanted them to get a game under their belts so that Niemi and Hendry and Hammer and the others who've never seen the post-season would know what they were doing and could shake the nerves out. No one's going to be happy about a loss, but I'm not terribly busted up over it.