dondo
11-03-2012, 11:41 PM
Kind of a clown show for the broadcasting crew in this one in my mind, lots of dumb comments. The line of Ast, Tvrdon and Kessy found some chemistry in the game. Not sure if their game would have been as productive versus a better team than the Ice though.
Giants Freeze Ice
Vancouver 6 Kootenay 3 EN
It was the battle of the cellar dwellers with the Giants coming out on top. The Giants got better ‘tending early and took advantage of some soft work by the Ice in their own end and soft effort between the pipes. New acquisitions were part of the momentum. It was interesting facing a team that have the same kind of record and rebuilding challenges that we are currently experiencing. Some sloppy work by the Ice gave the Giants some better opportunities. The Ice were also not getting the saves that keeps momentum for the home team. The kind of games that have been the story of the Giants so far this season. Although Marek Tvrdon may not be the kind of complete player we all hope to see, he is still the only one consistently getting points and leads the team in scoring.
Alex Grebenyuk needs to go back to broadcasting for Merritt as the cheerleading was slightly less tonight (helps with a lead – they don’t have to wave the pom-poms quite so hard), but his comments were frequently ignorant and at times downright stupid. I have had a real problem with the Giants game calls this season and splitting the duties home and away have further confused the issue. I don’t ever want to hear one of our broadcasters say we will win the game with a four goal lead and 15 and half minutes left to play in the game. In the WHL a three or even four goal lead is never safe. The Ice scored not long after the comment on a floater of a shot and the home team had better momentum in the final frame. It only takes a moment for a game to shift the other way and a supposedly experienced broadcaster should know that.
The Giants opened the scoring mid-first. Tvrdon found twine off of Kale Kessy and Anthony Ast. The first was a feisty uneven period in which neither team could really get any solid plays working for them. The Ice tied it up early in the second when the Giants were burned being sloppy on their PP. It was a short-handed marker that came from a soft and listless Giant PP squad who, as usual, passed softly and carelessly. Payton Lee had no chance on the shot. Ast scored his first of the season a short time later to give the Giants a lift in a period they would dominate. Kessy and Tvrdon were in on the play. That odd but effective line found some great chemistry tonight. Kessy rounded off his three point night potting one of his own mid-second. Tvrdon got the other helper. Jackson Houck found twine less than a minute later, taking a Trevor Cheek feed and picking the top corner glove-side on Wyatt Hoffin. Tvrdon added another very early in the third. It was marked as an unassisted tally but some good work by Kessy got the puck loose in the Kootenay zone. It could have gone off an Ice player’s skate before finding Tvrdon’s twig. Lee allowed a response a few minutes later that he will want back. Fired from just inside the blue-line the puck found the net. Lee argued it went through the net, but after a review the goal stood. The boys on the broadcast were saying Lee was too far back in his net and was not anticipating the shot. The Ice added another marker in the final minute of the game taking advantage of some soft Giants play. Mason Geertson scored his first as a Giant into the empty net to salt it all away with seconds left.
Team Notes: Payton Lee got the start in his home-town. According to the broadcast guys it was the first road start for a Giants netminder who was not Liam Liston. The G’s continued their roster tweaking during the break between games by dealing Nathan Burns to the Blades for Travis McEvoy a third in 2013 and a first in 2014. 18 yr old McEvoy was in the line-up in Cranbrook. Only three 19 year olds remain with the Giants as management is getting the team younger and bigger, but just as skilled is a question mark though. Good to see them getting some of those picks back that they dealt just before the season start. Two odd lines tonight: Ast, Tvrdon and Kessy and Houck, Cheek and mostly Popoff, but sometimes Kieser. Sward was playing on special teams and what felt like third line work. Blake Orban was back in and a +4, which makes me wonder why they didn’t play him versus Medicine Hat.
Fisticuffs: three fights in the first period, as both teams were looking for something to kick-start their games. Mason Geertson v. Spencer Wand – Geertson has quick hands for a big guy and might be the kind of player we have been lacking. Namely a big defensive defenseman who is willing and capable of dropping the mitts – something I expect out of Wes Vann.., but have yet to see this season. Dalton Sward v. Austin Vetterl - yes former teammates duking it out. Riley Kieser v. Spencer Wand at the twenty minute mark of the opening frame.
Zebra Cage: Ryan Benbow and Adam Griffiths: it seemed as if there were a few cheapshots not being called and some ignored calls. After being busy in the first the calls were few and far between in the second and third despite it being a chippy game.
The Giants out shot the Ice 28-24. The G’s were perfect on the PK for another game, but allowed a poor SH’d marker on a very ineffectual PP. It’s time for Hanlon to reassess the PP and get the boys to move the puck quicker and take more shots when they have an open lane instead of looking for that extra move or pass or dumb loft back to the point. The PP continues to be broken and although a lot of aspects of the Giants game have improved; the PP is not one of them. The G-Men went 0 for 4, while the Ice were 0 for 3. The Giants did a good job blocking shots and their commitment to that side of the game has been steadily improving. That stat is all about hard work and sacrifice and it’s been there more than not lately, even in some of their losses. Travis McEvoy gave the G’s some hard-nosed depth down the centre in this game and a potential two-way shut-down forward. Kessy continues to be an impact player and is managing to keep out of the box and not taking dumb penalties. Wearing Musil’s old “A” as an alternate captain he seems to be bringing leadership abilities to the team. Ast had some great hustle on the back-check backing up Kulak when the D-man pinched.
Next Up: The Tri-City Americans. The G’s rarely have any success in Kennewick and a win there would be a huge step back in the right direction. The problem is that the Ams are one of the top scoring teams in the Dub and always dangerous. I expect that Tyler Fuhr will get the start and he will have to be his best. To get a win the Giants will have to play the full 60 and ready and willing to sacrifice all over the ice at both ends of the rink. To be honest I don’t expect us to get the win, but everything is possible and I hope they prove me wrong. Using our size without getting caught flat-footed will do a lot to toward getting at least a point. Sitting back versus the speedy Ams is death, as they will pick you apart. A tenacious forecheck and early aggression forcing the Americans to scramble will be essential if we want to get off to a quick start.
Three Stars
1. Marek Tvrdon
2. Kale Kessy
3. John Martin
Dondo’s Hardhat: goes to – Kale Kessy – yes Tvrdon did get 4 pts, but was still sloppy at his own end of the ice and on the PP. Kessy had 1G 2A and stayed out of the box while still playing an edgy game. This is the kind of effort and control we need to see from him game in and game out. Honourable mention: to that line, Ast, Kessy, Tvrdon who were effective tonight and showed some real chemistry.
Giants Freeze Ice
Vancouver 6 Kootenay 3 EN
It was the battle of the cellar dwellers with the Giants coming out on top. The Giants got better ‘tending early and took advantage of some soft work by the Ice in their own end and soft effort between the pipes. New acquisitions were part of the momentum. It was interesting facing a team that have the same kind of record and rebuilding challenges that we are currently experiencing. Some sloppy work by the Ice gave the Giants some better opportunities. The Ice were also not getting the saves that keeps momentum for the home team. The kind of games that have been the story of the Giants so far this season. Although Marek Tvrdon may not be the kind of complete player we all hope to see, he is still the only one consistently getting points and leads the team in scoring.
Alex Grebenyuk needs to go back to broadcasting for Merritt as the cheerleading was slightly less tonight (helps with a lead – they don’t have to wave the pom-poms quite so hard), but his comments were frequently ignorant and at times downright stupid. I have had a real problem with the Giants game calls this season and splitting the duties home and away have further confused the issue. I don’t ever want to hear one of our broadcasters say we will win the game with a four goal lead and 15 and half minutes left to play in the game. In the WHL a three or even four goal lead is never safe. The Ice scored not long after the comment on a floater of a shot and the home team had better momentum in the final frame. It only takes a moment for a game to shift the other way and a supposedly experienced broadcaster should know that.
The Giants opened the scoring mid-first. Tvrdon found twine off of Kale Kessy and Anthony Ast. The first was a feisty uneven period in which neither team could really get any solid plays working for them. The Ice tied it up early in the second when the Giants were burned being sloppy on their PP. It was a short-handed marker that came from a soft and listless Giant PP squad who, as usual, passed softly and carelessly. Payton Lee had no chance on the shot. Ast scored his first of the season a short time later to give the Giants a lift in a period they would dominate. Kessy and Tvrdon were in on the play. That odd but effective line found some great chemistry tonight. Kessy rounded off his three point night potting one of his own mid-second. Tvrdon got the other helper. Jackson Houck found twine less than a minute later, taking a Trevor Cheek feed and picking the top corner glove-side on Wyatt Hoffin. Tvrdon added another very early in the third. It was marked as an unassisted tally but some good work by Kessy got the puck loose in the Kootenay zone. It could have gone off an Ice player’s skate before finding Tvrdon’s twig. Lee allowed a response a few minutes later that he will want back. Fired from just inside the blue-line the puck found the net. Lee argued it went through the net, but after a review the goal stood. The boys on the broadcast were saying Lee was too far back in his net and was not anticipating the shot. The Ice added another marker in the final minute of the game taking advantage of some soft Giants play. Mason Geertson scored his first as a Giant into the empty net to salt it all away with seconds left.
Team Notes: Payton Lee got the start in his home-town. According to the broadcast guys it was the first road start for a Giants netminder who was not Liam Liston. The G’s continued their roster tweaking during the break between games by dealing Nathan Burns to the Blades for Travis McEvoy a third in 2013 and a first in 2014. 18 yr old McEvoy was in the line-up in Cranbrook. Only three 19 year olds remain with the Giants as management is getting the team younger and bigger, but just as skilled is a question mark though. Good to see them getting some of those picks back that they dealt just before the season start. Two odd lines tonight: Ast, Tvrdon and Kessy and Houck, Cheek and mostly Popoff, but sometimes Kieser. Sward was playing on special teams and what felt like third line work. Blake Orban was back in and a +4, which makes me wonder why they didn’t play him versus Medicine Hat.
Fisticuffs: three fights in the first period, as both teams were looking for something to kick-start their games. Mason Geertson v. Spencer Wand – Geertson has quick hands for a big guy and might be the kind of player we have been lacking. Namely a big defensive defenseman who is willing and capable of dropping the mitts – something I expect out of Wes Vann.., but have yet to see this season. Dalton Sward v. Austin Vetterl - yes former teammates duking it out. Riley Kieser v. Spencer Wand at the twenty minute mark of the opening frame.
Zebra Cage: Ryan Benbow and Adam Griffiths: it seemed as if there were a few cheapshots not being called and some ignored calls. After being busy in the first the calls were few and far between in the second and third despite it being a chippy game.
The Giants out shot the Ice 28-24. The G’s were perfect on the PK for another game, but allowed a poor SH’d marker on a very ineffectual PP. It’s time for Hanlon to reassess the PP and get the boys to move the puck quicker and take more shots when they have an open lane instead of looking for that extra move or pass or dumb loft back to the point. The PP continues to be broken and although a lot of aspects of the Giants game have improved; the PP is not one of them. The G-Men went 0 for 4, while the Ice were 0 for 3. The Giants did a good job blocking shots and their commitment to that side of the game has been steadily improving. That stat is all about hard work and sacrifice and it’s been there more than not lately, even in some of their losses. Travis McEvoy gave the G’s some hard-nosed depth down the centre in this game and a potential two-way shut-down forward. Kessy continues to be an impact player and is managing to keep out of the box and not taking dumb penalties. Wearing Musil’s old “A” as an alternate captain he seems to be bringing leadership abilities to the team. Ast had some great hustle on the back-check backing up Kulak when the D-man pinched.
Next Up: The Tri-City Americans. The G’s rarely have any success in Kennewick and a win there would be a huge step back in the right direction. The problem is that the Ams are one of the top scoring teams in the Dub and always dangerous. I expect that Tyler Fuhr will get the start and he will have to be his best. To get a win the Giants will have to play the full 60 and ready and willing to sacrifice all over the ice at both ends of the rink. To be honest I don’t expect us to get the win, but everything is possible and I hope they prove me wrong. Using our size without getting caught flat-footed will do a lot to toward getting at least a point. Sitting back versus the speedy Ams is death, as they will pick you apart. A tenacious forecheck and early aggression forcing the Americans to scramble will be essential if we want to get off to a quick start.
Three Stars
1. Marek Tvrdon
2. Kale Kessy
3. John Martin
Dondo’s Hardhat: goes to – Kale Kessy – yes Tvrdon did get 4 pts, but was still sloppy at his own end of the ice and on the PP. Kessy had 1G 2A and stayed out of the box while still playing an edgy game. This is the kind of effort and control we need to see from him game in and game out. Honourable mention: to that line, Ast, Kessy, Tvrdon who were effective tonight and showed some real chemistry.