dondo
03-19-2011, 01:33 AM
Rockets Crash Giants
Vancouver 1 Kelowna 3
The boys continue to be their own worst enemies. The Rockets scored off of bad turnovers and some really poor coverage. Brendan Jensen with the start could have been better but, like Segal has been, he was hung out to dry far too much and sloppy careless turnovers put the puck onto Kelowna sticks in great positions. The G’s did not come out as they needed to do, and for the third straight game allowed the other guys to get a healthy lead before attempting to battle back. Adam Brown had a few clutch stops, but the boys did not really make it tough on him.
When I first started watching this team play under Don Hay I was impressed with their forecheck and intensity. I would love to know where that has game gone. Hay keeps preaching that in his interviews and yet all I see is a 1- 2 - 2 offensive system, dumping, sending in a single forechecker most times and promptly losing the puck when they do finally get possession. The Giants once were tenacious on the puck, refusing to let it go without a real fight, now someone gets close and they cough it up. Nice semi-breakaways are being painfully easily defused with a quick stick. The boys look like a mess out there (and not a hot one), they have no continuity, no consistency and their effort without the puck is as lacking as their effort with. 3 shots in the second period is simply unacceptable and the kind of game they are playing won’t win them even one game come playoff time. It was good to get Gally back, but the others are sleeping their way through the majority of the games, taking bad losses and not really seeming to care. There were a few bright spots in this one. Scott Cooke had some really nice hits and an excellent fight.
Geordie Wudrick opened the scoring, as he was left all alone in the slot by Brendan Rowinski who failed to take his man. A quick pass from behind the goal-line and the puck was in the net mid-way through the first. The Giants got their first shot of the second period over 10 minutes into the frame. Wudrick scored his second off a bad Giants turnover. Zach Franko scored one off of yet another bad turnover when the G’s failed to take care of the puck in their own end of the ice. It took a PP goal very late in the third for the Giants to break Brown’s shutout bid. Neil Manning notched the marker off of Brendan Gallagher and Spencer Bennett. Brown wasn’t really tested, but he did make some clutch stops that could have shifted the momentum when the game was still in question.
Rookie Watch: new rookies on this list – Anthony Ast the 15 yr old who had his second game of the week and was levelled with a head hit in this one, no call, and knocked out the game. Scott Cooke was –1, but brought a good physical game, had a wicked fight and some big hits. Hodder was solid at even. Brodyn Neilsen, a 5’ 10” 157lb player had a scoring chance, but for me how you can play these guys and not play Bellerive causes me to shake my head, maybe Bellerive is injured and I haven’t heard anything, if not he was a healthy scratch yet again. Hart still injured and recovering.
Fight Night: Scott Cooke vs Colton Jobke. Cooke had some nice rights and lefts, Jobke battled back, but Cooke finished it off and got the takedown. A good extended bout. Shane McColgan and Brendan Rowinski dropped the mitts very late in the second for a lightweight tilt, which was okay.
Zebra Cage: Matt Kirk and Steve Papp are, in my not so humble opinion, two of the worst refs in the league. Quite often they tend to be the most unpredictable pairing and have frequently let games get out of hand individually as well as together. So you have to understand I am biased. They “let the boys play” in this one. This is sometimes a good thing, but when you let a lot go and then call soft stuff then you lack consistency. The head shot on Ast warranted a penalty, especially in the current climate of cracking down on that kind of play. Not their worst outing by any stretch, but not what I would call good.
Giants were out shot 29-22 and out-chanced badly. The Giants got their only goal on the PP, going 1 for 3, while holding the Rockets to 0 for 3. This is the Giants 8th straight loss and is truly unheard of with a Don Hay squad, but the boys are not playing together they are not only not on the same page, but a hell of a lot of them seem to not even own the damn book. They are very careless when handling the puck, have a ridiculously low panic level (another strange thing for a Giants squad) and are making plays with the puck from bad positions and before they are ready. Part of that is the pressure other teams are applying, but a lot of it is not taking the time to assess your options. Blind back-passes should be forbidden on this team until they get it together. The sheer number of bad passes, due not necessarily to pressure, but more to the perceived need to move the puck quickly – has lead to dumb hockey, really dumb hockey – like “Bad Watt” level of dumb, but at a team level. I find this amazing as one of the main characteristics of a Giants team is smart hockey and tenacious puck hunger. Both of these have been missing for the past 8-10 games and the boys got away with games they maybe should not have won, due to their work ethic. However, when that work ethic goes out the door, the huge holes in their line-up become glaring.
The boys brought a better game in the third as they pressed back, but yet again it was way too little and far too late. I’m not sure how they expect to get wins, spotting their opponents huge leads and only then battling back and stepping up their game. I freely admit I have not enjoyed watching the boys play this stupid kind of hockey and that their lack of work and hunger after taking so many losses has me rather angry. They are not that bad of team, but they are playing like it. I was hoping Gally being back would give them a lift and that we’d get at least two periods out of them and ideally the full sixty, but we barely got 20 worth of effort. They have a chance to make amends and prove to the Rockets that the Giants are capable of beating them, but they have to do it in one of the toughest home arenas and after struggling badly versus their divisional rivals for the past few months. Not what you would call an easy task. The Giants have two more games in the regular season to find something positive heading into the playoffs. Tomorrow vs Kelowna in Kelowna and back at home vs the Everett Silvertips. The boys have had the Tips number this year and ending on a win would be most welcome and very necessary if they hope to have a hope in the second season.
Three Stars
1. Geordie Wudrick
2. Colton Sissons
3. Adam Brown
Dondo’s Doghouse: Too many too mention, maybe my doghouse has to be a podium or something positive, where it reflects the guys who deserve praise and not damnation. There was a time where the good far out-weighed the bad and this was just a place to point up who was being lazy. However, lately it has become a bit depressing for me having to write the same problems that are just not being addressed. Scott Cooke is not only not in the doghouse, but across the street from the doghouse after having a couple of energetic games and bringing the kind of sandpaper game the Giants crave.
Vancouver 1 Kelowna 3
The boys continue to be their own worst enemies. The Rockets scored off of bad turnovers and some really poor coverage. Brendan Jensen with the start could have been better but, like Segal has been, he was hung out to dry far too much and sloppy careless turnovers put the puck onto Kelowna sticks in great positions. The G’s did not come out as they needed to do, and for the third straight game allowed the other guys to get a healthy lead before attempting to battle back. Adam Brown had a few clutch stops, but the boys did not really make it tough on him.
When I first started watching this team play under Don Hay I was impressed with their forecheck and intensity. I would love to know where that has game gone. Hay keeps preaching that in his interviews and yet all I see is a 1- 2 - 2 offensive system, dumping, sending in a single forechecker most times and promptly losing the puck when they do finally get possession. The Giants once were tenacious on the puck, refusing to let it go without a real fight, now someone gets close and they cough it up. Nice semi-breakaways are being painfully easily defused with a quick stick. The boys look like a mess out there (and not a hot one), they have no continuity, no consistency and their effort without the puck is as lacking as their effort with. 3 shots in the second period is simply unacceptable and the kind of game they are playing won’t win them even one game come playoff time. It was good to get Gally back, but the others are sleeping their way through the majority of the games, taking bad losses and not really seeming to care. There were a few bright spots in this one. Scott Cooke had some really nice hits and an excellent fight.
Geordie Wudrick opened the scoring, as he was left all alone in the slot by Brendan Rowinski who failed to take his man. A quick pass from behind the goal-line and the puck was in the net mid-way through the first. The Giants got their first shot of the second period over 10 minutes into the frame. Wudrick scored his second off a bad Giants turnover. Zach Franko scored one off of yet another bad turnover when the G’s failed to take care of the puck in their own end of the ice. It took a PP goal very late in the third for the Giants to break Brown’s shutout bid. Neil Manning notched the marker off of Brendan Gallagher and Spencer Bennett. Brown wasn’t really tested, but he did make some clutch stops that could have shifted the momentum when the game was still in question.
Rookie Watch: new rookies on this list – Anthony Ast the 15 yr old who had his second game of the week and was levelled with a head hit in this one, no call, and knocked out the game. Scott Cooke was –1, but brought a good physical game, had a wicked fight and some big hits. Hodder was solid at even. Brodyn Neilsen, a 5’ 10” 157lb player had a scoring chance, but for me how you can play these guys and not play Bellerive causes me to shake my head, maybe Bellerive is injured and I haven’t heard anything, if not he was a healthy scratch yet again. Hart still injured and recovering.
Fight Night: Scott Cooke vs Colton Jobke. Cooke had some nice rights and lefts, Jobke battled back, but Cooke finished it off and got the takedown. A good extended bout. Shane McColgan and Brendan Rowinski dropped the mitts very late in the second for a lightweight tilt, which was okay.
Zebra Cage: Matt Kirk and Steve Papp are, in my not so humble opinion, two of the worst refs in the league. Quite often they tend to be the most unpredictable pairing and have frequently let games get out of hand individually as well as together. So you have to understand I am biased. They “let the boys play” in this one. This is sometimes a good thing, but when you let a lot go and then call soft stuff then you lack consistency. The head shot on Ast warranted a penalty, especially in the current climate of cracking down on that kind of play. Not their worst outing by any stretch, but not what I would call good.
Giants were out shot 29-22 and out-chanced badly. The Giants got their only goal on the PP, going 1 for 3, while holding the Rockets to 0 for 3. This is the Giants 8th straight loss and is truly unheard of with a Don Hay squad, but the boys are not playing together they are not only not on the same page, but a hell of a lot of them seem to not even own the damn book. They are very careless when handling the puck, have a ridiculously low panic level (another strange thing for a Giants squad) and are making plays with the puck from bad positions and before they are ready. Part of that is the pressure other teams are applying, but a lot of it is not taking the time to assess your options. Blind back-passes should be forbidden on this team until they get it together. The sheer number of bad passes, due not necessarily to pressure, but more to the perceived need to move the puck quickly – has lead to dumb hockey, really dumb hockey – like “Bad Watt” level of dumb, but at a team level. I find this amazing as one of the main characteristics of a Giants team is smart hockey and tenacious puck hunger. Both of these have been missing for the past 8-10 games and the boys got away with games they maybe should not have won, due to their work ethic. However, when that work ethic goes out the door, the huge holes in their line-up become glaring.
The boys brought a better game in the third as they pressed back, but yet again it was way too little and far too late. I’m not sure how they expect to get wins, spotting their opponents huge leads and only then battling back and stepping up their game. I freely admit I have not enjoyed watching the boys play this stupid kind of hockey and that their lack of work and hunger after taking so many losses has me rather angry. They are not that bad of team, but they are playing like it. I was hoping Gally being back would give them a lift and that we’d get at least two periods out of them and ideally the full sixty, but we barely got 20 worth of effort. They have a chance to make amends and prove to the Rockets that the Giants are capable of beating them, but they have to do it in one of the toughest home arenas and after struggling badly versus their divisional rivals for the past few months. Not what you would call an easy task. The Giants have two more games in the regular season to find something positive heading into the playoffs. Tomorrow vs Kelowna in Kelowna and back at home vs the Everett Silvertips. The boys have had the Tips number this year and ending on a win would be most welcome and very necessary if they hope to have a hope in the second season.
Three Stars
1. Geordie Wudrick
2. Colton Sissons
3. Adam Brown
Dondo’s Doghouse: Too many too mention, maybe my doghouse has to be a podium or something positive, where it reflects the guys who deserve praise and not damnation. There was a time where the good far out-weighed the bad and this was just a place to point up who was being lazy. However, lately it has become a bit depressing for me having to write the same problems that are just not being addressed. Scott Cooke is not only not in the doghouse, but across the street from the doghouse after having a couple of energetic games and bringing the kind of sandpaper game the Giants crave.