Linkens Mastery
Conductor of the TankTown Express
Wait a darn minute..... did the Blues score with an empty net??? What is this witchcraft!!!
GDT: Game 2/82 Blues vs Sharks 9:30PM CST ESPN+/HULU
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ChicagoBlues
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Snubbed4Vezina
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They did. Though we really need to talk about the strategy of pulling the goalie with 2.5 minutes left when the team has shown an obvious affinity for getting scored on very quickly after the goalie is pulled. I'd like to see possession first at that point.
96 more wins in a row to complete the perfect season!
Brian39
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You never want to go down 4-1 against a team like the Sharks, but I thought there were way more positives than negatives in that game.
I see comments about the Blues not starting on time, sleepwalking through the first 40 minutes, etc and I really don't agree with them. We looked great in the 1st. We were 70% or better in every possession/chance metric. We had 11 high danger chances, 2.6 expected goals for, and were doing a great job of getting Blackwood moving pre-shot. He made a number of excellent saves, they scored a very fluky goal, and then Hofer made a pretty poor play cheating to the other post for the Sharks 2nd goal. Yes we went to the locker room down 2-1, but sometimes that happens in this sport. Dominate like that every period and you will very rarely get outscored.
The 2nd was not good at all. You can tell we were deflated from the lack of results in period 1 and San Jose had energy from surviving the 1st with a lead. And then the 3rd was good. I don't think we played as well in the 3rd as we did in the 1st, but Blackwood finally faltered, which often happens as the shot count starts pushing into the high 30s.
All in all, we ended the game 61% or better in every metric at 5 on 5. Two of the four pucks that went into our net were put in by our own player and Hofer looked off overall. Our contributions came from up and down the lineup. As importantly, we scored in a wide variety of ways. Goal #1 was a fluky bounce on a 2 on 1 rush. Goal 2 was a behind the net jam play following a nice forecheck turnover. Goal 3 was off a contested neutral zone battle where we forced the puck into their zone, turned it over inside the blueline and then fed a trailing D man for a slot shot. Goal 4 was extended O zone movement with an empty net. Then goal 5 was an end-to-end rush with a clean shot from Schenn. None of those goals looked alike and demonstrated a variety of ways we can generate chances. And that is on top of the team generating a number of A grade scoring chances that were stopped.
Again, don't like to go down 4-1, but I thought our play for the first 40 minutes was much better than the score suggested. San Jose was very fortunate to be up 4-1 and we didn't throw in the towel as things went sideways.
I see comments about the Blues not starting on time, sleepwalking through the first 40 minutes, etc and I really don't agree with them. We looked great in the 1st. We were 70% or better in every possession/chance metric. We had 11 high danger chances, 2.6 expected goals for, and were doing a great job of getting Blackwood moving pre-shot. He made a number of excellent saves, they scored a very fluky goal, and then Hofer made a pretty poor play cheating to the other post for the Sharks 2nd goal. Yes we went to the locker room down 2-1, but sometimes that happens in this sport. Dominate like that every period and you will very rarely get outscored.
The 2nd was not good at all. You can tell we were deflated from the lack of results in period 1 and San Jose had energy from surviving the 1st with a lead. And then the 3rd was good. I don't think we played as well in the 3rd as we did in the 1st, but Blackwood finally faltered, which often happens as the shot count starts pushing into the high 30s.
All in all, we ended the game 61% or better in every metric at 5 on 5. Two of the four pucks that went into our net were put in by our own player and Hofer looked off overall. Our contributions came from up and down the lineup. As importantly, we scored in a wide variety of ways. Goal #1 was a fluky bounce on a 2 on 1 rush. Goal 2 was a behind the net jam play following a nice forecheck turnover. Goal 3 was off a contested neutral zone battle where we forced the puck into their zone, turned it over inside the blueline and then fed a trailing D man for a slot shot. Goal 4 was extended O zone movement with an empty net. Then goal 5 was an end-to-end rush with a clean shot from Schenn. None of those goals looked alike and demonstrated a variety of ways we can generate chances. And that is on top of the team generating a number of A grade scoring chances that were stopped.
Again, don't like to go down 4-1, but I thought our play for the first 40 minutes was much better than the score suggested. San Jose was very fortunate to be up 4-1 and we didn't throw in the towel as things went sideways.
Glad I ended up staying up to watch it but that 4:45 alarm clock was a killer this morning. Great to see this team have some fight in them, or as our old friend Panger would say "show some gumption" in the comeback win. Gonna be a tough one tonight in Vegas
Brian39
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The skating is as advertised and expected. I really enjoy watching his stride and he can skate himself out of trouble and into good ice based on speed alone. However, I've been more impressed by his edgework and ability to make quick adjustments to shake a forechecker. He does a good job surprising opponents with a subtle move to improve his available passing lanes.
So far I've been pleasantly surprised by his breakout passes. It could just be a small sample size, but there have been fewer 'what the hell are you thinking' pass attempts than my past viewings of him. His instincts with the puck have been good so far in all 3 zones. I expected that in the O-zone, but his decision making in the D zone has been better than expected.
His stick disruption has been pretty solid. I've been impressed with his gap control and his ability to force attacking forwards to go where he wants them to go. And he has the edgework to avoid getting burned one way or the other when the forward commits to that path.
I think he has looked like an actual 2nd pair D man in both games so far.
That pissed me off too.f*** espn and their little OT montage, the first two clips were the Yzermam goal and the Bobby Orr goal
bleedblue1223
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Unfortunately, those are 2 of the more iconic goals in NHL history.f*** espn and their little OT montage, the first two clips were the Yzermam goal and the Bobby Orr goal
Linkens Mastery
Conductor of the TankTown Express
Seems like the only 2 who were overwhelmingly negative yesterday were Kappy and Joseph.
That is a surprise about Joseph as I thought he played pretty well, especially in the first period he really stood out to me, I liked his game.
Linkens Mastery
Conductor of the TankTown Express
Him and Kapanen were stapled together, which certainly drags him down
jura
booze & blues
Brian39
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I thought both had decent games so I'm a bit surprised by that chart. I thought both of them made a number of good plays that went nowhere because whoever they tried to pass to flubbed the puck. Not that either wowed me, but I was happier about their games than I was with Bolduc's.
I thought Bolduc looked thoroughly unimpressive. He seemed like a step-behind passenger on most of his shifts. I want to prioritize his development and allow him to look unimpressive, but his play last night made me understand why he was set to be a scratch.
TheDizee
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LogosBlue
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Thomas was great compared to Holloway. Just seemed every time he touched the puck it was turned over or lost control. Tough night for him.
Stlblue50
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I heard last night that the Blues didn't score a single goal under a minute with their goalie pulled all last season! I'm surprised it's not a stat that is talked about more, pretty much never hear anyone mention a team's conversion or defending 5 on 6 stats. It also feels like they get scored on all of the time 5 on 6 and not just last season.
The lack of clutch game tying goals has been a thing for a long time....going back to the Petro years when he NEVER held the puck in with simple passes.
To a new season!
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Stlblue50
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The famous game in Toronto vs CUJO when they started the 3rd down 0-4 (I think). The stat said since 2000 and that game was for sure in 2000 or 2001.
I remember coming back against the Hawks last December down 3 goals but I assume they didn't enter the 3rd down 3.
LGB
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It was Schenn - Thomas - Bolduc
Neighbours - Thomas - Saad was a pretty good line later in the year as well
BleedBlue14
UrGeNcY
ezcreepin
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I agree with this. I was surprised at the fight, not because I don't think they can do it, but this iteration of the Blues is quite young and the guys we have aren't the type to get things going in that way. I harken it to the 2010s Blackhawks when no matter what, they were going to tie it or at least make you look stupid while they lose, both physically and talent wise. Thought these two wins were character wins despite the teams being weaker. I don't know how much Julien is playing into the defense, but it is clear that they've MASSIVELY changed philosophy in defensive structure, scheme, and strategy. Or at least that's what I could tell from the bit I've been able to watch. Active sticks, stepping up on the blue line, crisp outlet passes. Neutral zone I'm less sure, but the transition game seems to be pretty active and effective early in the season. Plenty to dislike, but lots to like so far.
Also wanted to add that I agree with you on Broberg. I've had opinions thrown at me that he's barely a bottom pairing guy, lots of talent but he's a 7th man, etc. From the little bit I've been able to pay attention to him, his skating is fluid, he has had good escapes in the d-zone, and the thing I've been impressed with is the outlet passes. There were numerous times he made a pass right on the stick and I just haven't seen that in idk how long. Excited to see how he progesses.
Celtic Note
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