GDT: Game 1 - 1-CAR vs 4-NAS

[Chrispy]

Not sure if they were just partial changes or not but it seemed at times in the third Rod/Dean had done just that. Saw Pesce/Bean a few times and Hakanpaa/Skjei.

Interesting. My first guess was this was coming off a PP because Bean/Pesce are often used on PP2 to have two D out there as it ends, so throwing Skjei/Hakanpaa out there after makes sense.

But there weren't any PP in the 3rd, so this does appear to be a shift of pairings or partial changes. I did see a lot of partial changes last night; it feels like that's a strategy to minimize the Nashville counter-attack.

 

[hockeynjune]

I will say, props to the PNC staff on getting the lines moving quickly to get into the arena. When I saw the line stretch halfway across the parking lot at 7:30 I thought we would be waiting forever, but I was basically at my seat in 15 mins, and that was after a stop at the pisser on the way in.

Now, let's hope they get beer numbers good for Game 2. They ran out in our area after the first period, which is to be expected when probably 5x as many people were in those sections as expected on Thursday.

Yepp, Larry runs a tight ship. We were in that long line as well. Kudos to his folks for making it happen.

 

[Incubajerks]

Lorentz got the roughing call after hitting Haula against the boards I believe (iffy call I thought) Reviewing nhl.com and it looks like Johansen and Teuvo both got 2 min misconducts at 18:13 but I didn't see what led to it. I think it was Foegle who got tied up with Duchene on the faceoff and both got two mins for unsportsmanlike.

Lorentz penalty was right, he roughed Haula who was already in a vulnerable position because of a McGinn crosscheck. The Foegele one i thought was meh...it was all Duchene with his elbow.

 

[Navin R Slavin]

I'm still pissed about that dive called on Ginner. That's not a guy who dives, ever.

 

[hockeynjune]

I'm still pissed about that dive called on Ginner. That's not a guy who dives, ever.

Yepp, cowardly call at best.

 

[Svechhammer]

Just curious, what was he saying about the fans?

No idea it was a couple sections over, but you could tell he wasn't making dinner and a movie plans with the fans, lets put it that way

 

[RodTheBawd]

Hey friends, I heard there was a hockey match last night. How'd it go?

 

[The Faulker 27]

I'm still pissed about that dive called on Ginner. That's not a guy who dives, ever.

Thought the same thing. If it looked like a dive it means it was that much worse.

 

[Stickpucker]

I was in Michigan a few weeks ago. A store opened up right across from our hotel that was a drive-thru dispensary. Didn't matter if it was 8:00 Sunday morning, or 9:00 Tuesday night, there were always 5-10+ cars in line.

My sister (who works for an electrical contractor) said they tried re-hiring a number of guys laid off at the start of the pandemic, and a good chunk of them failed their drug test.

Sounds like a great business to get into.

If I had the coin I'd open a Bojangles with a dispensary right next door.

Both those places are always full even on a holiday.

 

[Svechhammer]

There were also a ton, and I mean a ton, of calls that could and should have been called on Nashville last night that were allowed. Straight up clutch and grab all over the ice last night to the point where it was a bit embarrassing that the refs were allowing it. Game Management was on full display in the 3rd period.

 

[GoldiFox]

Haula was getting so butthurt. It was glorious. During one of the ice scrapings he came over to the corner, picked up a blade full of snow, and tossed it over the glass at a guy that had been jeering him.

* This appears to be the interview linked below. It was just weird looking from the other side of the arena as he kept looking up at this guy shouting at him*
Then at the end of the second period Haula sat outside the tunnel and it looked like he was arguing with a fan for about 5 minutes. Both his coach and the refs were getting on him.

 

[bleedgreen]

Thought the same thing. If it looked like a dive it means it was that much worse.

It looked like an awful dive. I didn’t believe it initially because they announced it before you really get a look.....but it was as blatant as any bad dive you’ve ever seen. He throws his legs up straight in the air with nothing pushing them like that. Then he freaks out as you’d expect him to because....well it’s McGinn and you’d never expect him to dive but I completely understand why they called it. It looked like one you’d get a fine for.

 

[Anton Dubinchuk]

Haula was getting so butthurt. It was glorious. During one of the ice scrapings he came over to the corner, picked up a blade full of snow, and tossed it over the glass at a guy that had been jeering him. Then at the end of the first period Haula sat outside the tunnel and it looked like he was arguing with a fan for about 5 minutes. Both his coach and the refs were getting on him.

It's very clear he's not a Wilson/Marchand that feeds off of it. He's trying to be but the more his coaches are yelling at him the better.

 

[The Faulker 27]

Haula was getting so butthurt. It was glorious. During one of the ice scrapings he came over to the corner, picked up a blade full of snow, and tossed it over the glass at a guy that had been jeering him. Then at the end of the first period Haula sat outside the tunnel and it looked like he was arguing with a fan for about 5 minutes. Both his coach and the refs were getting on him.

What a waste of time. Letting fans get to you like he was is such an amateur hockey thing to do.

 

[tarheelhockey]

Just curious, what was he saying about the fans?

Here's the interview, which didn't capture the back-and-forth with the fans:



I post this because it kind of gives you a sense of how they took a guy who was already getting booed in the first place, and then scored a goal with a mocking celly, and had him stand 10 feet in front of a full section of fans and stare directly into the crowd for like 3 minutes. Of course the fans were giving it to him, and of course he was giving it back to them. No harm done on either side.

Haula was a good soldier for the Canes, and he was a good soldier for the Preds last night. Not sure what folks were expecting in a playoff series, but this isn't about being kind and respectful to the opponent. If he can get under the Canes' skin and make it about chasing him around to get revenge for wounded pride, that's exactly what he's going to do. Meanwhile, yes he is going to hit guys and run his mouth and go to the net and generally be a pain in the ass. It's the playoffs.

With the exception of that celly, he didn't do a single thing last night that we wouldn't have wanted him to do for us if he were still wearing a Canes sweater.

 

[Discipline Daddy]

From my seat, it looked like Lorentz hit Haula in the head against the boards, so I can see why the refs would have called the same. But on replay, it really wasn't, and it was an iffy call at best.

Nashville's only hope in this series is to play over the line and goad us into bad penalties and take us off our game. Last night, it backfired. Their chippiness actually played right into the style we wanted to play, and in the middle of the 2nd we asserted physical dominance over them to the point where Nashville got taken off their game by it. Lorentz, Hakanpaa, Pesce, and Slavin threw some seriously heavy hits last night that will absolutely wear a team down over 3 periods, let alone 7 games. This team isn't soft anymore. They're capable of throwing their weight around and playing better because of it.

Ned was shaky early, but he settled down as the game progressed. Chalk it up to first playoff game experience, and now that he got that out of the way, we should be fine there. Bean had a pretty rough game, with a really bad giveaway leading to Nashville's 2nd. He's actually had a pretty rough season in general. He really needs a bit more seasoning before you can trust him in any kind of high pressure situation.

Haula was a bit of an asshole all game. You couldn't see it on broadcast, but he was chirping at the fans all game. Nashville broadcast interviewed him in the tunnel at the 2nd intermission, and he spent a decent amount of time mean mugging and shit talking the fans around him. I just don't really understand why he's doing this, he wasn't anywhere near good enough of a player to have this kind of grudge against the team and fans for how last season played out. And if his goal was to be a pest in order to take us off our game, it didn't work in the slightest.

Agreed. I figured the penalty was on something else. Lorentz very clearly lets up after initially planning on hitting Haula. This wasn't a penalty at all. Nashville also textbook boarded a guy, no penalty, in the 2nd or 3rd. Double standard for sure. Refs seemed to be playing the classic "have to call an even # of penalties on both teams". Very frustrating. At least for the Lorentz hit, it did LOOK like a penalty if you just saw the hit and no other context. A bad call, but a defensible one.

It's crazy that Haula has become the heel. I just didn't think he had that in him. And I don't get it. He's not that good of a player. Like Foegele is the kind of guy who is a heel just because he plays that Matthew Barnaby in-your-face style. Foegs is all forechecking, a real bee-in-your-bonnet pain to play against. But Haula just... isn't. He is a pretty soft player. It's like Aho trying to play dirty. He's just more of a skill guy. It's crazy that this is pretty much Haula just putting it on himself. He HATES the Canes. He hates our fans, he hates our coaching staff. Maybe he picked it up when he played for the Panthers last year.

All in all I think we're in Nashville's head. If they keep playing to make a big hit, then we'll keep playing the scoreboard.

 

[Svechhammer]

With the exception of that celly, he didn't do a single thing last night that we wouldn't have wanted him to do for us if he were still wearing a Canes sweater.

Winning the game is something I would have preferred someone in our jersey to do

 

[tarheelhockey]

Winning the game is something I would have preferred someone in our jersey to do

Maybe Haula should have scored 6 goals?

 

[Svechhammer]

Maybe Haula should have scored 6 goals?

f***ing slacker, no wonder we traded him

 

[tarheelhockey]

But Haula just... isn't. He is a pretty soft player. It's like Aho trying to play dirty.

Other fanbases absolutely see Aho as a yapper and a stickwork guy, and we would 110% be giving him this same treatment if he had ended up in Montreal. And he's the sort of guy to fire back if he pots a goal.

Come on, guys. This isn't personal between Haula and the fanbase. It's not even a Lindholm situation where he seemed to get some sort of persecution complex in his head. Haula had some early run-ins with a couple of our players (it's a playoff game) and the fans started riding him with boos every time he touched the puck. Yes, when he scores right after that he's going to celly. Yes, when he has to do a lower-bowl interview right after that the fans are going to scream a blue streak at him. Yes, when that happens he's going to chirp back. None of this is anything that wouldn't happen with Aho or Hamilton or Trocheck if they're wearing a different sweater.

 

[Boom Boom Apathy]

Haula was a good soldier for the Canes, and he was a good soldier for the Preds last night. Not sure what folks were expecting in a playoff series, but this isn't about being kind and respectful to the opponent.

Debatable.

 

[Anton Dubinchuk]

Other fanbases absolutely see Aho as a yapper and a stickwork guy, and we would 110% be giving him this same treatment if he had ended up in Montreal. And he's the sort of guy to fire back if he pots a goal.

Come on, guys. This isn't personal between Haula and the fanbase. It's not even a Lindholm situation where he seemed to get some sort of persecution complex in his head. Haula had some early run-ins with a couple of our players (it's a playoff game) and the fans started riding him with boos every time he touched the puck. Yes, when he scores right after that he's going to celly. Yes, when he has to do a lower-bowl interview right after that the fans are going to scream a blue streak at him. Yes, when that happens he's going to chirp back. None of this is anything that wouldn't happen with Aho or Hamilton or Trocheck if they're wearing a different sweater.

Then why are you getting meta on us? Are we not fans? You said it yourself - other fanbases see Aho as a yapper and a stickwork guy. Why are we not allowed to hate Haula?

Haula reacted to the fans to the extent that the coaches were yelling at him. Is that not abnormal? Can we not egg that on?

Not only that, but when a guy comes after Brind'Amour, it becomes personal between him and this fanbase. Brind'Amour is hallowed territory at this point.

 

[Navin R Slavin]

Debatable.

I think there's a lingering sense among fans that we didn't get his best here, and more than that, that he didn't really want to be here. Combine that with his newfound pestiness, and there you go.

Put it this way: when Calgary comes to town, no one will be booing Hanifin. They will be booing the guy who mocked the storm surge.

Lindholm and Haula, to me, are the same deal. The fans don't like them and feel like they underachieved in their time here, these guys take it personal so they amplify it with their bullshit, and there you go.

I'm fine with Haula as a villain. He gives the Canes a reason to play with an edge. That serves us a hell of a lot better than it serves them.

 

[MinJaBen]

As long as no one is taking the hate out of the arena and doing stupid shit to him or his family, I'm all for the fans giving him (or anyone really) the business when he (or other former players) plays against our team. Sports is boring if we don't care. If it gets in the players head a little bit and they play worse, too, great.

 

[Boom Boom Apathy]

I think there's a lingering sense among fans that we didn't get his best here, and more than that, that he didn't really want to be here. Combine that with his newfound pestiness, and there you go.

Put it this way: when Calgary comes to town, no one will be booing Hanifin. They will be booing the guy who mocked the storm surge.

Lindholm and Haula, to me, are the same deal. The fans don't like them and feel like they underachieved in their time here, these guys take it personal so they amplify it with their bullshit, and there you go.

I'm fine with Haula as a villain. He gives the Canes a reason to play with an edge. That serves us a hell of a lot better than it serves them.

Yep. In addition, fans LOVE RBA and Haula was at odds with the player, coach and team hero that fans love. So of course people are going to boo him.

I have no problem with him trying to get under players skin, that's part of the game and like you said, I'm fine with him being a villain.