Friday, December 16, 2005
Friday's Lightning Round
...and we're not talking Tampa Bay, here!
The Canucks beat the Flyers 5-4 in their only head to head meeting of the season. That means I get bragging rights over my girlfriend (the Flyers fan) for an entire year! :)
Alex Auld was sure quick to quiet down the panic in other parts of Vancouver with a fine 39-save performance over the evil ones from the City of Brotherly Love. (How did Philly get that nickname? It doesn’t fit, at all!)
Yes, I am one of those fans who is somewhat delighted to see Cloutier is injured. It may be creepy to some, but Cloutier is not the goalie I want in the net. If the Canucks are forced to play Auld, then so be it. (And that is why Canuckville is a goalie graveyard. There are 1000s like me who are just as grumpy)Fred Meyer IV? Yep, that’s the name of the young man who dressed up for the Flyers last night. Is he the first ‘4th’ player to play in the NHL?
And what’s up with fathers naming their sons after themselves? Really, after the 2nd time, it gets pretty old and creepy.
Here is an answer to the question I'm sure has been burning through your mind.
Jaroslav Balastik might be having a nightmare season for the Dinner Jackets, but he's still got more goals (2) than Sergei Fedorov (1) and Rick Nash (0) combined.
From the mailbag, a sharp observation from ‘Phil’
Phil is absolutely right in his assessment, and it’s old hockey lore that I observe to be true on many occasions: Speed kills! If you come in slowly on a goaltender, you are giving him the ultimate advantage. If you come in with speed, you force the goalie into an uncomfortable situation and the goalie often has to make the first move/guess. A goalie just can’t normally move the way he wants to when he has little time and has to back up quickly as supposed to having all the time in the world and standing fairly still.
The big difference, for the attacking player, is adrenaline. In a game situation, the player knows he has a player or two or three chasing him and he better get his ass moving and get a shot off quickly. The player’s basic instincts take over, and we know that the basic instincts separate the creamers from the dreamers. (Oh, that doesn’t sound right)
In a shootout, a player has too much time to think and they override their basic instincts. The players also have no pressure and tend to go in much slower than they would in a real breakaway.
PJ @ Sharkspage.com scored an interview with Capitals fan-friendly owner Ted Leonsis.
Two things that stick out…
1.
2. PJ scores “Typo of the Month” honours for spelling Alexander Semin’s last name as “Semen” multiple times. D’oh!
The Canucks beat the Flyers 5-4 in their only head to head meeting of the season. That means I get bragging rights over my girlfriend (the Flyers fan) for an entire year! :)
Yes, I am one of those fans who is somewhat delighted to see Cloutier is injured. It may be creepy to some, but Cloutier is not the goalie I want in the net. If the Canucks are forced to play Auld, then so be it. (And that is why Canuckville is a goalie graveyard. There are 1000s like me who are just as grumpy)
And what’s up with fathers naming their sons after themselves? Really, after the 2nd time, it gets pretty old and creepy.
From the mailbag, a sharp observation from ‘Phil’
Now that penalty shots are a regular feature in NHL games (shootout) its amazing to see how poorly trained most pro players are at the fundamentals of taking a penalty shot.
The basic problem I see is a general lack of skating speed as the player moves in.
They often cruise in stickhandling and weaving back and forth - trying to look cool in my opinion. By the time they get near the goal, the goalie has an easy save to make weather its a deke or a shot. Speed is critical to taking a penalty shot because the shooter has to be moving forward much faster than the goalie can back up. The goalie comes far out at first to take away the shot then quickly backs up to handle a deke if the player doesnt shoot. If the shooter is waltzing in, then it requires a perfect shot or spectacular deke to beat him.
Phil is absolutely right in his assessment, and it’s old hockey lore that I observe to be true on many occasions: Speed kills! If you come in slowly on a goaltender, you are giving him the ultimate advantage. If you come in with speed, you force the goalie into an uncomfortable situation and the goalie often has to make the first move/guess. A goalie just can’t normally move the way he wants to when he has little time and has to back up quickly as supposed to having all the time in the world and standing fairly still.
The big difference, for the attacking player, is adrenaline. In a game situation, the player knows he has a player or two or three chasing him and he better get his ass moving and get a shot off quickly. The player’s basic instincts take over, and we know that the basic instincts separate the creamers from the dreamers. (Oh, that doesn’t sound right)
In a shootout, a player has too much time to think and they override their basic instincts. The players also have no pressure and tend to go in much slower than they would in a real breakaway.
Two things that stick out…
1.
We are not going to look at our website as being a brochure for the team, we are going to look at it as where our fans live online. And it is where the Caps and the fans intersect. And we are going to try to make it a hub for all of our activities. We have a very lively community.The New NHL has meant a new approach to the internet for the NHL and its club sites. I agree that the official and team sites are less ‘brochure’ oriented and getting to be more interactive. I’ve seen more interviews, features, and even blogs than we saw in the past. Ted and the Caps have always taken the lead, and it’s nice to see the NHL follow suit.
2. PJ scores “Typo of the Month” honours for spelling Alexander Semin’s last name as “Semen” multiple times. D’oh!
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I wonder if the Fred Meyer you speak of is related to the Fred Meyer supermarket chain. If so, that may explain why he's named "Fred IV". But I guess he won't be selling Cheerios until his playing days are over.
By the way, your boy Balastik had a good night last night.
By the way, your boy Balastik had a good night last night.
Considering Nash has only played 2 games this season, I'd say Balastik better have more goals than him!
I didn’t even know he was the IV. The Flyers and Phantom sites just have him as Freddy Meyer. I find it a bit odd that they used his given name on the score sheet.
For once I would like to see a game where the Flyers don’t have someone getting injured. The injuries are beyond ridiculous now. This keeps up, by the end of the season half the team will be from Trenton.
I’m having the same feelings with the Flyers in regards to goalies. I hope Esche stays sidelined, I think Niittymaki is the better guy.
For once I would like to see a game where the Flyers don’t have someone getting injured. The injuries are beyond ridiculous now. This keeps up, by the end of the season half the team will be from Trenton.
I’m having the same feelings with the Flyers in regards to goalies. I hope Esche stays sidelined, I think Niittymaki is the better guy.
# posted by 
: 8:00 pm
: 8:00 pm
Welcome to Carolina v.2002-2003, Flyers fans.
And I concur with Dave--Fantastic Balastik looked pretty good last night.
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And I concur with Dave--Fantastic Balastik looked pretty good last night.
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