dondo
03-13-2010, 05:15 PM
Well despite the loss, for the most part it was an exciting game as the Giants came back and Gallagher got his 40th of the season - a feat accomplished by only two other players in franchise history. Segal had a rough night to be sure and two bad rebounds killed his team. At times the goalie looks poised to make that next step and then a game later looks like a Junior B wanna-be. The boys also have to be better at locking the other guys in their own end of the ice. The Rockets were able to break-out of their zone very easily last night and didn't have to work too hard for their goals. A positive is that the Giants had to gut out their goals and if they were to only bring that effort a bit more effectively. I am sure Hayzer will not be pleased with the number of passengers last night though.. this is the time we need to learn to gut it out every shift -- unless of course they are deliberately sandbagging ;) to give other teams a false sense of security come playoff time. Nah.
Rockets Fizzle Giants
Vancouver 3 Kelowna 4
Don Robinson
The Giants were hoping to get some revenge for the 3-0 loss they took in Kelowna, but came out flat and seriously lazy. The Rockets scored three unanswered, taking advantage of defensive breakdowns, horrible rebounds and sloppy play with the puck. The Giants battled back to get one in the first and tied it up with two in second. The game was a bit chippy. The refs put the whistles in their pockets in the third for the most part, which is a shame as there were definitely liberties being taken. With the Giants doing well on the PP, it felt as if the refs were too busy trying to equalise the penalties than call what was there. The Rockets though were very aggressive on the puck, challenging the puck carrier and more often than not coming away with the rubber. The Rockets finally got the game-winner late in the third off of a horrific rebound. The puck was basically gifted back onto a Rocket stick and that ended the momentum. The Giants scrambled for the final five, but failed to tie the score losing a game in which they should have at least taken away a point.
Mark Segal allowed three goals on 5 shots to start the game and although he bounced back later on, it was his major gaffe which gave the Rockets the win. All the blame cannot rest on his shoulders though, as the Giants allowed themselves to be out-worked and muscled consistently off of the puck by the surging Rockets. Shane McColgan opened the scoring, ripping the puck past Segal from the slot. Geordie Wudrick padded that lead when Segal very feebly kicked the puck out into the wide open slot. Wudrick deposited the puck into the undefended half of the net. The Giants then misplayed the puck in the offensive zone, giving a cherry picking Brandon McMillan, patrolling close to the Giants blue-line, a wide open breakaway, beating Segal with a nice deke and burying the puck in the top of the net with a wicked backhand. Segal remained between the pipes and his team rallied a bit on the PP. Milan Kytnar muscled a rebound through Adam Brown while on the doorstep to give the Giants a bit of life, before the end of the period.
The Giants played their best period in the second when they continued to find the net at times seemingly out of nowhere. Off of a disorganized PP in which the G’s were struggling to find open ice along the boards, the puck squirted loose to Neil Manning in the slot. Manning found twine firing the puck past a very well-screened Brown. James Henry and Kevin Connauton got the helpers. Just over a couple of minutes later Brendan Gallagher scored his 40th of the season, a feat previous achieved only by Adam Courchaine and Evander Kane. At 17 and in his draft year, the diminutive Gallagher is poised to be a core player for many years to come. Gallagher goes to the hard parts of the ice to find his goals and rarely gives up on the puck. He impressed in his first camp as a 15 year old and hasn’t looked back. Gally got his 40th off of a nice feed from James Wright off the side-boards, driving the net from the face-off dot and ripping the puck short side on Brown. He was one of the bright spots for the G’s in this game. There seemed to be a few too many passengers tonight on the Giants for my liking and although it appeared as if the effort was there, the effectiveness of their checking was minimal.
The Giants played the third not wanting to lose as opposed to driving to get the win. They sat back and played patient hockey, waiting until they were down a goal before upping their tempo and intensity. It proved too little too late. Wudrick got his second of the game just before the 15 minute mark of the final frame, off of another Segal gift. Bloodoff took a shot and Segal kicked the rebound straight back to the same position. Wudrick swooped in and rifled the puck post and in to get the go ahead and eventual game winning goal. After playing a solid couple of periods and recovering decently from his earlier slide, his poor rebound control killed him and his team in the end. Segal has been inconsistent this season and will have great games and very poor games. As an 18 year old rookie in the league, he’ll need to shore up that part of his play and bring a more consistent effort game to game if he hoops to take his team deep into the playoffs. He is fundamentally very solid and has the potential to grow exponentially, but at time loses focus and seems to have a hard time making that one stop that preserves his team. It may not feel fair to say, but the elite goalies manage to make those saves and if he hopes to vie for that level of game he needs to find that missing component consistently. I didn’t like the reffing in this game as I felt that the Rockets were allowed to take many liberties down the stretch that weren’t being called, but that said I think the Rockets controlled a good deal of the play in the third and did a good job pressuring the puck.
The Giants barely out shot the Rockets 32-29. The home squad was 2 for 4 on the PP, while they held the Rockets to 0 for 3. Adam Brown made a couple of really nice saves to get his team the win, but was not what you would call brilliant. I would not have given him a star on the night. The game was the first of three in three, with the first two games taking place at the Giants home arena. The Giants take on the Blazers, another team on which they need to get some measure of revenge, Saturday night for the G’s final home game of the regular season. The puck drops on fan appreciation night and unused season ticket night at 7pm. The house should be pretty much packed to the rafters.
Three Stars
1. Geordie Wudrick
2. Brendan Gallagher
3. Adam Brown
Rockets Fizzle Giants
Vancouver 3 Kelowna 4
Don Robinson
The Giants were hoping to get some revenge for the 3-0 loss they took in Kelowna, but came out flat and seriously lazy. The Rockets scored three unanswered, taking advantage of defensive breakdowns, horrible rebounds and sloppy play with the puck. The Giants battled back to get one in the first and tied it up with two in second. The game was a bit chippy. The refs put the whistles in their pockets in the third for the most part, which is a shame as there were definitely liberties being taken. With the Giants doing well on the PP, it felt as if the refs were too busy trying to equalise the penalties than call what was there. The Rockets though were very aggressive on the puck, challenging the puck carrier and more often than not coming away with the rubber. The Rockets finally got the game-winner late in the third off of a horrific rebound. The puck was basically gifted back onto a Rocket stick and that ended the momentum. The Giants scrambled for the final five, but failed to tie the score losing a game in which they should have at least taken away a point.
Mark Segal allowed three goals on 5 shots to start the game and although he bounced back later on, it was his major gaffe which gave the Rockets the win. All the blame cannot rest on his shoulders though, as the Giants allowed themselves to be out-worked and muscled consistently off of the puck by the surging Rockets. Shane McColgan opened the scoring, ripping the puck past Segal from the slot. Geordie Wudrick padded that lead when Segal very feebly kicked the puck out into the wide open slot. Wudrick deposited the puck into the undefended half of the net. The Giants then misplayed the puck in the offensive zone, giving a cherry picking Brandon McMillan, patrolling close to the Giants blue-line, a wide open breakaway, beating Segal with a nice deke and burying the puck in the top of the net with a wicked backhand. Segal remained between the pipes and his team rallied a bit on the PP. Milan Kytnar muscled a rebound through Adam Brown while on the doorstep to give the Giants a bit of life, before the end of the period.
The Giants played their best period in the second when they continued to find the net at times seemingly out of nowhere. Off of a disorganized PP in which the G’s were struggling to find open ice along the boards, the puck squirted loose to Neil Manning in the slot. Manning found twine firing the puck past a very well-screened Brown. James Henry and Kevin Connauton got the helpers. Just over a couple of minutes later Brendan Gallagher scored his 40th of the season, a feat previous achieved only by Adam Courchaine and Evander Kane. At 17 and in his draft year, the diminutive Gallagher is poised to be a core player for many years to come. Gallagher goes to the hard parts of the ice to find his goals and rarely gives up on the puck. He impressed in his first camp as a 15 year old and hasn’t looked back. Gally got his 40th off of a nice feed from James Wright off the side-boards, driving the net from the face-off dot and ripping the puck short side on Brown. He was one of the bright spots for the G’s in this game. There seemed to be a few too many passengers tonight on the Giants for my liking and although it appeared as if the effort was there, the effectiveness of their checking was minimal.
The Giants played the third not wanting to lose as opposed to driving to get the win. They sat back and played patient hockey, waiting until they were down a goal before upping their tempo and intensity. It proved too little too late. Wudrick got his second of the game just before the 15 minute mark of the final frame, off of another Segal gift. Bloodoff took a shot and Segal kicked the rebound straight back to the same position. Wudrick swooped in and rifled the puck post and in to get the go ahead and eventual game winning goal. After playing a solid couple of periods and recovering decently from his earlier slide, his poor rebound control killed him and his team in the end. Segal has been inconsistent this season and will have great games and very poor games. As an 18 year old rookie in the league, he’ll need to shore up that part of his play and bring a more consistent effort game to game if he hoops to take his team deep into the playoffs. He is fundamentally very solid and has the potential to grow exponentially, but at time loses focus and seems to have a hard time making that one stop that preserves his team. It may not feel fair to say, but the elite goalies manage to make those saves and if he hopes to vie for that level of game he needs to find that missing component consistently. I didn’t like the reffing in this game as I felt that the Rockets were allowed to take many liberties down the stretch that weren’t being called, but that said I think the Rockets controlled a good deal of the play in the third and did a good job pressuring the puck.
The Giants barely out shot the Rockets 32-29. The home squad was 2 for 4 on the PP, while they held the Rockets to 0 for 3. Adam Brown made a couple of really nice saves to get his team the win, but was not what you would call brilliant. I would not have given him a star on the night. The game was the first of three in three, with the first two games taking place at the Giants home arena. The Giants take on the Blazers, another team on which they need to get some measure of revenge, Saturday night for the G’s final home game of the regular season. The puck drops on fan appreciation night and unused season ticket night at 7pm. The house should be pretty much packed to the rafters.
Three Stars
1. Geordie Wudrick
2. Brendan Gallagher
3. Adam Brown