My apologies for the delay. The Pens game was pretty straightforward - a solid defensive effort coupled with the offense capitalizing on its chances. Early on, play was sloppy and Zajac's goal came off a broken play. Keeping it 1-0 for a long time left the outcome uncertain until Pando and Gionta ("Peanut" as I call him) put the biscuit in the basket. Apparently, nobody knew Gionta's goal was his 100th and the puck has gone missing. Granted there'll be more, but 100 is a big milestone.
The end of the game featured a Slap Shot moment where Jordan Staal purposely tripped Marty Brodeur with 5 seconds left. Yes, he got a tripping penalty, but somehow something like this isn't enough in my mind. Goalies need to be protected by the refs and cheap shots like this are dangerous; they could easily be injured. While I do believe that a suspension is too hard a punishment, a fine is in order.
Tonight, the Devs face the Capitals (read: Alex Ovechkin). With White out, Lukowich has been called up to take on the top forwards of the other team. Earlier in the season and last year, I thought Lukowich wasn't worth his salary and should have been waived or traded. He turned the puck over constantly, missed assignments in front of the net (recall Erik Staal's goal with 5 seconds left in Game 2 of the second round last year), and general bad decisions on the ice. It seems like he's turning the corner and becoming the defenseman he was in Tampa Bay and Long Island. Hopefully he keeps this up because the Devils need all the help they can get on defense.
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
No comments:
Post a Comment