GDT: Phoenix Coyotes vs Ottawa Senators - Tuesday Oct. 27, 2K10 @ 7:30 pm ET (SNET)

Cap'n Clutch wrote:

Number Twenty Nine wrote:http://video.nhl.com/videocenter/console?catid=40&id=80015


bwaaaaaaaaaahaaaaaaaa haaaaa haaaa haaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa!!!!

Who's laughin' now?

let's hope this continues and not his flash of brilliance then disappear routine from last year.

TheAvatar wrote:

marakh wrote:

SpezDispenser wrote:Very pleased.

That wasn't all pretty though. THat 2nd period was bad, and there are still some defensive breakdowns, trying to be too fancy at times then getting tired in the defensive zone, taking some penalties. I saw Philips make 2 horrific plays.
At least he's playing around 21 min now, and Gonchar is back down to 23. At least Hale can play bottom 2 D.
Karlsson is getting better but his poise is not back yet, still forcing some plays on the PP.

OVerall, the transition was pretty good.

Think about your damned glass half empty. They just won the game 5-2 and you're complaining that they didn't play a perfect game? Honestly.

So what?
Sorry if I have more objectivity than you do.
Maybe you should lilsten to the coach, because he agrees with me.

No need to get testy. They won. 2 points. Obviously still things to work on, but for a team that's missing its top-line center (and never had a true 2nd line center), minute-munching defenseman and #1 goalie (questionable) that's not too shabby. Powerplay continues to improve (may be top-10 soon); goals for going up, goals against stabilizing; PK now in the top-10.

It's always good to have things to work on, but it's OK to enjoy a victory.

GO SENS! That was a great effort last night through and through. I know there were times where they didn't keep up their pressure, but I am very pleased with the outcome of this game and the all around play of most on the team. Elliott was phenomenal when he needed to be, he made some point blank saves to keep us in it, best game for him this year by far. I am very happy to see that they seem to be getting closer and closer to all being on the same page.

Phillips will take some time to get his game back, he's gone from one extreme to the other with his partner, it's going to be an adjustment for him to get used to. It could take quite some time, but I have faith that he will be okay and start to get it all together.

Good point about Elliott, SG11. I almost completely forgot. When the score was 4-2 he made some really nice saves to keep it that way, and even with the game out of reach (that 5 on 4 and then 5 on 3 with under 2 minutes to go) he stood tall (or sat tall at one point). It wasn't a game saver by any stretch (given they were up by 3) but it goes a long way in boosting his confidence, and that of his team mates.

He was the Molson 3rd star with 28 saves.

Interesting to hear the "media" downplaying Kovalev's performance from last night. John "The Man of the Fecal" Rodenberg says that the apocalypse is upon us. Lee "Small Time" Versage thinks that the 1st goal was a bad goal and noted Kovalevs 5 giveaways.

They make me sick.

marakh wrote:

TheAvatar wrote:

marakh wrote:

SpezDispenser wrote:Very pleased.

That wasn't all pretty though. THat 2nd period was bad, and there are still some defensive breakdowns, trying to be too fancy at times then getting tired in the defensive zone, taking some penalties. I saw Philips make 2 horrific plays.
At least he's playing around 21 min now, and Gonchar is back down to 23. At least Hale can play bottom 2 D.
Karlsson is getting better but his poise is not back yet, still forcing some plays on the PP.

OVerall, the transition was pretty good.

Think about your damned glass half empty. They just won the game 5-2 and you're complaining that they didn't play a perfect game? Honestly.

So what?
Sorry if I have more objectivity than you do.
Maybe you should lilsten to the coach, because he agrees with me.

There are two teams on the ice. Phoenix brought it rather than wilt after a very bad first period and Ottawa wasn't ready for it. Keep in mind they have two rookies and a softmore on D and are still missing Kuba. They're also missing Spezza and still performed superbly on the PP. Sure there's things to work on but it's not as bad as you're suggesting.

SeawaySensFan wrote:Interesting to hear the "media" downplaying Kovalev's performance from last night. John "The Man of the Fecal" Rodenberg says that the apocalypse is upon us. Lee "Small Time" Versage thinks that the 1st goal was a bad goal and noted Kovalevs 5 giveaways.

They make me sick.

I think you meant to use this smily -

I'm very pleased, but there's still things to clean up.

The Positives:

-Obviously Kovalev. He commanded the walls, he made plays, he made the Yotes' D work hard

-Brian Elliott kept the Sens in the game in the 2nd and early 3rd - big time

-Alfredsson had a tap in from the amazing Kovalev pass, but he worked hard for those two points

-Regin was great, from being right in front of Bryzgalov for the 2nd Kovalev goal to working the boards, to making nice passes

-Foligno - definitely SG11 got pissed at him for missing another open net last night, but he's part of that trio (Regin, Kovalev) that work hard and have the skill to back it up

-Hale - who is this guy? He didn't play like this in the pre-season - keep on keeping on

-Karlsson - snipe and he seems to be getting more comfortable

-Gonchar - ditto, getting there for sure

The Negatives:

-good Lord, Kovalev basically wins the game for us on his own, but man, did he ever try to give it back to the Yotes. 2 of the most astounding giveaways, right in the slot - should have resulted in goals. He owes Elliott a dinner

-Phillips - we're starting to slowly see the real Phillips, but last night he struggled for extended periods of times.

-Too many PKs. Enough with the 8 penalties a game. Against a better oppoenent, we lose last night (not that the Yotes are bad, but they're struggling).

-Michalek - come on man! You can do this, we need you to contribute nightly.

marakh wrote:

SpezDispenser wrote:Very pleased.

That wasn't all pretty though. THat 2nd period was bad, and there are still some defensive breakdowns, trying to be too fancy at times then getting tired in the defensive zone, taking some penalties. I saw Philips make 2 horrific plays.
At least he's playing around 21 min now, and Gonchar is back down to 23. At least Hale can play bottom 2 D.
Karlsson is getting better but his poise is not back yet, still forcing some plays on the PP.

OVerall, the transition was pretty good.

Yeah, it wasn't all good, but it's a launching pad. As you say, the big D-men have to shave their minutes back from the high 20s (Gonch) to where he played last night. I agree, Hale makes a BIG difference playing 12+ minutes compared to 1:28 for Lee. Still can't wait for Kuba, but if I were GM, I'd get rid of Lee and make Hale the permanent 7th man (although...the point is for Hale to work in Bingo as well I guess).

I don't think it's an accident that Karlsson is looking a LOT better since being paired with Hale.

On the other hand, I think the team is dead set against losing Lee for nothing.

SeawaySensFan wrote:Interesting to hear the "media" downplaying Kovalev's performance from last night. John "The Man of the Fecal" Rodenberg says that the apocalypse is upon us. Lee "Small Time" Versage thinks that the 1st goal was a bad goal and noted Kovalevs 5 giveaways.

They make me sick.

Reminiscent of some of the Dung that I've read here.

SeawaySensFan wrote:I don't think it's an accident that Karlsson is looking a LOT better since being paired with Hale.

On the other hand, I think the team is dead set against losing Lee for nothing.

Agreed. Interesting comment too SSF, I think they actually are loathe to waive Lee and have him picked up for nothing.

SpezDispenser wrote:

SeawaySensFan wrote:I don't think it's an accident that Karlsson is looking a LOT better since being paired with Hale.

On the other hand, I think the team is dead set against losing Lee for nothing.

Agreed. Interesting comment too SSF, I think they actually are loathe to waive Lee and have him picked up for nothing.

I'm pretty pleased that they're showing this kind of patience, though. I'm not a big fans of losing players for nothing either.

TheAvatar wrote:

SeawaySensFan wrote:Interesting to hear the "media" downplaying Kovalev's performance from last night. John "The Man of the Fecal" Rodenberg says that the apocalypse is upon us. Lee "Small Time" Versage thinks that the 1st goal was a bad goal and noted Kovalevs 5 giveaways.

They make me sick.

Reminiscent of some of the Dung that I've read here.

Really? I think people are calling it exactly how it went down. Kovalev was dominant - but he gave the puck away twice right in the slot, right to open Yotes - both should have resulted in goals. I love how people conveniently forget that and focus solely on Kovalev putting up points.

Bottom line: Kovalev was astounding - aside from the two horrific giveaways - and we can only hope he continues (but perhaps without the giveaways).

Classic Kovalev, now he's tied for 4th on the team in scoring (along with Fisher, Karlsson). I've always liked him, but I have never expected him to be a consistent contributor. His reputation as an inconsistent, streaky, and talented player preceded him. So please, for the sake of your own sanity, don't expect it to change now.

SpezDispenser wrote:I'm very pleased, but there's still things to clean up.

The Positives:

-Obviously Kovalev. He commanded the walls, he made plays, he made the Yotes' D work hard

-Brian Elliott kept the Sens in the game in the 2nd and early 3rd - big time

-Alfredsson had a tap in from the amazing Kovalev pass, but he worked hard for those two points

-Regin was great, from being right in front of Bryzgalov for the 2nd Kovalev goal to working the boards, to making nice passes

-Foligno - definitely SG11 got pissed at him for missing another open net last night, but he's part of that trio (Regin, Kovalev) that work hard and have the skill to back it up

-Hale - who is this guy? He didn't play like this in the pre-season - keep on keeping on

-Karlsson - snipe and he seems to be getting more comfortable

-Gonchar - ditto, getting there for sure

The Negatives:

-good Lord, Kovalev basically wins the game for us on his own, but man, did he ever try to give it back to the Yotes. 2 of the most astounding giveaways, right in the slot - should have resulted in goals. He owes Elliott a dinner

-Phillips - we're starting to slowly see the real Phillips, but last night he struggled for extended periods of times.

-Too many PKs. Enough with the 8 penalties a game. Against a better oppoenent, we lose last night (not that the Yotes are bad, but they're struggling).

-Michalek - come on man! You can do this, we need you to contribute nightly.

The Michalek comment is bang on. For the first half of last season, you noticed that guy every night -- largely because he had a near breakaway or 3 every game, and was constantly rushing the net. We're not seeing enough of that lately. I hope those injuries haven't slowed him down and/or made him overly tentative.

TheAvatar wrote:

SeawaySensFan wrote:Interesting to hear the "media" downplaying Kovalev's performance from last night. John "The Man of the Fecal" Rodenberg says that the apocalypse is upon us. Lee "Small Time" Versage thinks that the 1st goal was a bad goal and noted Kovalevs 5 giveaways.

They make me sick.

Reminiscent of some of the Dung that I've read here.

Most def.