Puck 'N Hockey

Luckily, I did not watch most of the Flames’ 5-3 dismantling of the Capitals Sunday afternoon.  I had to leave the house half way through the second period to get to my Sunday night league game.  A couple lucky bounces and defensive breakdowns seemed to go Calgary’s way.  Being a team clawing their way into the playoffs, they capitalized on those opportunities and stole two points at Verizon Center.

Abbreviated Postgame Thoughts:

• The first goal was really fluky and  ended with a huge defensive error.  The puck was bouncing all over the place and ends up near Ales Kotalik’s blade in front of Theodore.  Now, the breakdown occurs as Kotalik is charging towards the Caps’ cage, Jason Chimera is right with him.  Once they reach the crease, Chimera peels off towards the corner, literally skating away from the puck and his man, Kotalik.  The rest is history.
• From that point on I agree with coach Bruce Boudreau that Jose Theodore, “was fighting the puck; every shot”.
• I did not think the Capitals had a chance to win this game down 3-0 when Semyon Varlamov was sent on to relieve Theodore.
• The Flames were and still are a dangerous team for two reasons.  1) They are obviously desperate.  2) They play dirty.
• Mike Green put a clean hit on Eric Nystrom.  So, of course, Nystrom has to get Green back by leaving his feet later in the game.
• Cory Sarich boards Jason Chimera down low in the Flames’ zone and then wants to fight the guy he just boarded.
• Quite simply, if the Flames cannot beat you, they will beat you.  Whether it’s respectable hockey or not.
• In the few minutes that I watched him, Mathieu Perreault looked very undersized and was a liability down low at both ends of the ice.  Calgary skaters had no trouble knocking him off the puck or shielding the puck with their bodies as Perreault tried to strip the puck.  An NHL center man has to play “big” down low, even if he gives up some size to opposing players.

Like I said, I had to leave for my game and missed the rest of the debacle yesterday afternoon.  Meanwhile, the Devils lost and the Capitals clinched the first seed in the Eastern Conference for the first time in franchise history.  So, it’s not all bad, right?