Edmonton Oilers at Clagary Falmes
8pm (MST)
Hockey Night in Canada (CBC) and 630CHED
Both the Oilers and the Flames have lost their last four. So, even though both teams aren't doing so good, at least there's a losing skid to snap and whoever wins this one is likely going to go on and win a number of their next games. The Oilers have been playing well and losing, so their chances of grabbing this one looks pretty good, even though Mikka Kiprusoff has a pretty good record against us.
Goaltending/Defense
Personally, I think Roloson should sit this one. Sneering at a puck doesn't stop it, and right now I'm not sure his head is on right. Maybe bitter looks work, but all the same, why not start Garon tonight? I like Roli, but he looks stressed out. Then again, so would I if the help I was getting in front consisted of Grebeshkov and call-up Allan Rourke.
Leadership
I like the jump and energy that's building up again after losing steam just a few games into this season. With all our injuries, I think everyone was waiting for someone to step up and take the lead. Shawn Horcoff and Ales Hemsky finally grabbed the gauntlet and we've been doing better by inches in the past three outings. Torres has been surprisingly good and consistent, registering something like 10 of the 33 shots on Wednesday.
New Kids
Cogliano continues to amaze me with ability to crank his speed up to eleven and Brodziak is what he was supposed to be: dependable. Gagner has faded quite a bit, playing less minutes and doing less with them. I look for that to change tonight. Meanwhile Nillson obviously doesn't want that ticket back to Springfield, bringing his game with him Wednesday vs the Avs.
Hemsky on the PK?
Listening to Stauffer a couple days ago he made the case that Hemsky should play on the PK. Brownlee's big objection was, "I don't want to see Hemsky blocking shots". I'm actually on board with the idea of playing Hemsky on the PK once in a while. How will it affect the other team when they know one bad pass will likely equal giving up a short handed goal? It's not like the PK could get any worse, so why not give it a try? Hemsky doesn't have to block any shots, he just has to be on the ice for 30 seconds.
Scraps for the Flames
Anyway, Calgary under Keenan has played both phenomenally and horribly. It's like they're still trying to find their identity. I gotta hand it to Keenan, though. He seems like he's mellowed and this can only make him a more measured coach. Will Calgary settle into the right formula soon? God, I hope not. But after three coaches in as many years, you know all they're lacking is consistency.
Oil 3 - Flames 1
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1 comment:
Way to go boys. Yippii-kayay indeed. The way they played was heartwarming, the win felt soooooooo good.
That Horc tip was too cool.
Gagner's snap through the D's legs was great. The way he gets pucks on the net makes me shake my head and smile. And I may get a Cogs jersey afterall, or at least a t-shirt.
Sooo happy for Nilsson. I think he's really going to roll now.
Stoll may disappoint on the stat sheets but I still love what he does out there.
The only thing I'm pissed about is that Regher hit on Hemsky, could've broke his freakin neck. That was unacceptable. Forget hockey, it could've changed his quality of life. I had some hope the NHL finally got it, but if this goes unpunished I'm writing a stongly worded email. And perhaps Stoll can give his celebrity golf tourney buddy a talking to as well.
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