CrashingTheGoalie

by desertdawg
Well, Daddy’s back home and a little hung over from his festive afternoon. And we all know the best cure for a brandy hangover…don’t we, Brandy!
And we knew the Blues would come out harder tonight and the worst case scenario would be the early soft goal. To our credit, that didn’t materialize. Although they outshoot us, we didn’t give them even a glimmer of hope. And we hit them…hard. Now, the truth is, we didn’t do much more than that. Even when Hinote took the penalty, we didn’t look particularly dangerous. It was predictably physical and that was the biggest highlight for me.
If we want to win, we’ll need to see the boys step it up a bit. We need to see Mats using his size and hands, Demitra his speed and shot. But once again it was the under-rated Wellwood/Raymond/Bernier line that seemed to have the most spark. Once Raymond’s speed translates into goals, this line will ascend in status. I remember Tony Tanti spending his first season with the Canucks missing chance after chance. The next year he scored by the bushel.
We show the colours early in the second. Once the Sedins and Burrows finish booting it around, Bieksa gets a platinum chance but the puck gets tipped to the netting instead of the net. Kesler combines with Mats for a great follow up chance…but nothing yet. The Blues kid line finally shows up and Edler and O’Brien get crossed up. We are on the PK. The Blues get what they deserve as our PK simply outworks them.
And the parade to the box starts. Lou makes an eye popper off Backes and then the Blues get called on the trip. Two glorious chances and we tip the puck wide. Our PP gets chance after chance and Burrows pounds one to the back of the net.

Unfortunately, he was playing a version of handball. Heat of the moment move. The only damage was to the dignity.
St Lou follow up with the hated too-many-men penalty. Those dumb ones can be harder to kill. Again my eyes bulge out at the quality scoring chances…but no ceegar. My impression is that we are growing in strength as the game proceeds.
Curiously, we get casual at the three minute mark but Andy MacDonald hits iron. And then the sloppy play works down at the other end as a Demitra flea-flicker gets down-bounced by the much maligned Mats Sundin. The danger in us pressing in a game like this is not getting the reward. Mats solves that as he scores the huge goal.
And then Crombeen plays the pick and goes off for interference with a buck and a half to go but it ends without more damage. The warning from Andy Murray will be to not allow the Canucks to do what they did to the Blues in the third period of last game. Our guys will need to hammer the hope out of the Blues in the final twenty.
We start it off with another big time chance but Mason stones Henrik. We don’t seem to be sitting back. The talk tomorrow will also include Wellwood and what appears to be another gear…or some kind of new-found ferocity, taking the body, jamming the puck to the front of the net.

Seven minutes in, against the run of the play, Burrows is sent off for tripping. Another chance for Lou to make a couple of spine tinglers. And then another. And then another. The PK ends with the Blues running around in confusion. And then the Sedins work hard to reward brother Burrows for his hard work. Alex comes from behind the net and does what real goal scorers do…he pounds it to the back of the cupboard where daddy keeps the condoms.

That’s gonna leave a scar. Backes delivers a dirty elbow after the goal and I don’t imagine Andy Murray’s whining will extend to that move.
Andy MacDonald is going to have nightmares about Roberto and the goal posts tonight…and he might not be the only one as the Blues start pressing to get back into the game. Every bluenote is deep and Daniel gets a great chance. But St Lou has no choice now. It’s balls to the wall time.

Andy Murray is constantly screaming at the refs and it finally pays off as Mitchell gets called to the bin. The Blues spend the first minute and a half just trying to gain the zone. They don’t want to shoot it in…but the they can’t carry it in either.
Monster kill.
And speaking of an extra gear, Henrik puts the clutch down and ends this one. All St Lou can do is try and rough it up. Crombeen just embarrasses himself against Bieksa. The standard dog pile in the corner ensues. Andy Murray loses his composure…and finally, his dignity.
All that’s left is to take out the trash. We win the first two games and that indeed is a great feeling. But this one isn’t over yet.