dondo
11-16-2013, 04:13 AM
A good win against a tough team. Rathjen was a difference maker.
Giants Tame Tigers
Vancouver 3 Medicine Hat 2
The Giants have Jared Rathjen to thank for this win, as he was clutch when pressed. The Gs pressed hard in the first, scoring three goals and holding the Tigers off-the scoresheet. The reffing in the first was soft, but in the second and third it became ridiculous, calling ghost penalties on one side and ignoring the same thing on the other side. The Tigers found the score sheet on one of their many PP chances in the second. This gained them a bit of momentum for a time, but the G-Men battled back. In the third I thought the Giants got away from what made them successful earlier in the game. I was disappointed to see them forechecking less and sitting back more and it could have gone sideways if not for Rathjen. Weathering a bunch of penalties might have kept the Giants focused as they were forced to play in their own end more than they would have liked. The Tigers found twine later in the period, making things interesting for the final five minutes. The game finally culminated in a win for the home team and a line brawl at the buzzer.
The Giants opened the scoring just over 5 minutes into the game. It felt like the Giants of old, watching them crash the net and get to rebounds. Ty Ronning found twine from the slot. Carter Popoff and Brett Kulak got the assists. Jackson Houck scored on a Giants 5 on 3 PP, assisted by Cain Franson and Dalton Thrower. A couple of minutes later Dalton Sward found twine going hard from behind the net, determinedly chipping it over the goalie’s pad. Thomas Foster and Tim Traber had the helpers. The Tigers used a second period PP to get themselves on the scoresheet. They scored again in the second to make it close and then rattled a puck off the cross bar not long after that. The play was reviewed and deemed no goal. With seconds left and the goalie pulled the Tigers swarmed the Giants net and Rathjen was forced to rob Canucks prospect Hunter Shinkaruk of a goal and then Dylan Bredo with less than 5 seconds on the doorstep.
Team Notes: The Giants added a 19 yr old sniper from Junior B AJHL Wolverines to their line-up. Trace Elson was very fast and had a few forays, but he is still undersized and in my mind duplicates what we already have. If we keep this kid, we might as well get rid of Hamilton and Leone. I find this pick-up very odd as this is not a player who was holding out for a NCAA contract, Like Casey Pierro-Zabotel, he was a final cut from the Red Deer Rebels. He played 5 games for the Rebels in which he got one assist. I have nothing against this kid in particular, but I don’t see what he really brings that we don’t already have. With Ast gone for an extended stint on the IR I suppose he fills that gap. It’s one game so I will have to give him a chance to change my mind. Dalton Thrower was back in this one and seemed to be targeted by Pat Smith for cheap and cheesy penalty calls. Thrower was solid on the back end and had one assist.
Rookie Watch: Elson was okay playing fourth and some third line minutes as far as I could tell. I did notice his speed though, very quick on the blades. Looks like our two euros were scratches once again. I still don’t get it to be honest. Why draft them if we are not going to play them. The only way they will get used to our game is by playing. Anyway it’s two home games in two nights, so I suspect they will be back in the line-up for tomorrow’s tilt. Ronning had a good game tonight, a nice hungry goal and some good shifts playing with Houck and Popoff for the most part.
Fight Night: line brawl at the end of the game, but only one fight on the stats sheet Dalton Thrower v. Hunter Shinkaruk. After pulling Shinkaruk off some other players, Thrower demolished him with some hard punches, finally sending both of them to the ice. It took several minutes to get everyone to clear the ice surface.
Zebra Cage: Pat Smith and newbie Dexter Rasmussen. Awful, simply awful. Precious and weak, inconsistent and lop-sided. At the risk of being labelled a homer the Giants simply did not play a more undisciplined game than the Tigers. Invisible interference calls, nudges on the shoulder being called boarding and then the same happens at the other end of the ice and nothing. Smith was the biggest culprit, but sadly as the game went on Rasmussen started calling soft crap as well. I really hope he doesn’t think this is how a WHL game should be called, because the officiating was a mess.
The Giants barely out shot the Tigers 35-33, with both squads getting quality chances on net. The Giants went 1 for 3 on the PP, while the Tigers went 1 for 8. The Gs had great first period, but by the end had to hold on and were not as intense as they started. They matched well versus a top team in East and managed to shutdown the high flying offence of Shinakruk. The effort in their own end of the ice was excellent and when they did make a mistake, Rathjen was there to make some very tough stops.
Not a perfect game by any stretch, but I loved seeing that kind of effort in their own end and on the offensive side. It bodes well for future games. Thrower brought a stabilizing presence to the ice and Kulak had another solid outing. Sward seems to be getting more confidence as the season progresses and scored a gritty greasy Machacek-like goal tonight that is the sort of hockey he should be playing all the time. Traber and Foster had some good shifts playing on the third line as well.
The Giants PK was very good. They closed the gaps and covered the passing lanes, blocked shots and had several offensive forays short-handed. This game could have been a disaster had the Tigers found twine on more of their PP chances, especially since the calls were very weak all game long. I would have liked some more puck support by the boys and less individual forays in the third, but a good building game for the team. Sticking up for one another at end of the game was an important step as well.
The Giants have little time to bask in tonight’s win as they have the Tri-City Americans coming to town tomorrow. The boys will be wearing special White Spot jerseys, Tyler Benson will make his WHL regular season debut and it’s a special country night at the arena. I expect Lee will get the nod between the pipes. The Americans played tonight edging out the Pats 5-3 after leading 4-1 at one point in the game. The puck drops at the Coliseum at 7pm PST.
Three Stars
1. Jared Rathjen
2. Dalton Sward
3. Tommy Vannelli
Dondo’s Hardhat: goes to Dalton Thrower .. I liked his game and how the team gelled in their own end of the ice. A good assist and standing up for team mates at the end of the game. He has brought some real leadership to this team and very valuable on the ice and in the dressing room.
Giants Tame Tigers
Vancouver 3 Medicine Hat 2
The Giants have Jared Rathjen to thank for this win, as he was clutch when pressed. The Gs pressed hard in the first, scoring three goals and holding the Tigers off-the scoresheet. The reffing in the first was soft, but in the second and third it became ridiculous, calling ghost penalties on one side and ignoring the same thing on the other side. The Tigers found the score sheet on one of their many PP chances in the second. This gained them a bit of momentum for a time, but the G-Men battled back. In the third I thought the Giants got away from what made them successful earlier in the game. I was disappointed to see them forechecking less and sitting back more and it could have gone sideways if not for Rathjen. Weathering a bunch of penalties might have kept the Giants focused as they were forced to play in their own end more than they would have liked. The Tigers found twine later in the period, making things interesting for the final five minutes. The game finally culminated in a win for the home team and a line brawl at the buzzer.
The Giants opened the scoring just over 5 minutes into the game. It felt like the Giants of old, watching them crash the net and get to rebounds. Ty Ronning found twine from the slot. Carter Popoff and Brett Kulak got the assists. Jackson Houck scored on a Giants 5 on 3 PP, assisted by Cain Franson and Dalton Thrower. A couple of minutes later Dalton Sward found twine going hard from behind the net, determinedly chipping it over the goalie’s pad. Thomas Foster and Tim Traber had the helpers. The Tigers used a second period PP to get themselves on the scoresheet. They scored again in the second to make it close and then rattled a puck off the cross bar not long after that. The play was reviewed and deemed no goal. With seconds left and the goalie pulled the Tigers swarmed the Giants net and Rathjen was forced to rob Canucks prospect Hunter Shinkaruk of a goal and then Dylan Bredo with less than 5 seconds on the doorstep.
Team Notes: The Giants added a 19 yr old sniper from Junior B AJHL Wolverines to their line-up. Trace Elson was very fast and had a few forays, but he is still undersized and in my mind duplicates what we already have. If we keep this kid, we might as well get rid of Hamilton and Leone. I find this pick-up very odd as this is not a player who was holding out for a NCAA contract, Like Casey Pierro-Zabotel, he was a final cut from the Red Deer Rebels. He played 5 games for the Rebels in which he got one assist. I have nothing against this kid in particular, but I don’t see what he really brings that we don’t already have. With Ast gone for an extended stint on the IR I suppose he fills that gap. It’s one game so I will have to give him a chance to change my mind. Dalton Thrower was back in this one and seemed to be targeted by Pat Smith for cheap and cheesy penalty calls. Thrower was solid on the back end and had one assist.
Rookie Watch: Elson was okay playing fourth and some third line minutes as far as I could tell. I did notice his speed though, very quick on the blades. Looks like our two euros were scratches once again. I still don’t get it to be honest. Why draft them if we are not going to play them. The only way they will get used to our game is by playing. Anyway it’s two home games in two nights, so I suspect they will be back in the line-up for tomorrow’s tilt. Ronning had a good game tonight, a nice hungry goal and some good shifts playing with Houck and Popoff for the most part.
Fight Night: line brawl at the end of the game, but only one fight on the stats sheet Dalton Thrower v. Hunter Shinkaruk. After pulling Shinkaruk off some other players, Thrower demolished him with some hard punches, finally sending both of them to the ice. It took several minutes to get everyone to clear the ice surface.
Zebra Cage: Pat Smith and newbie Dexter Rasmussen. Awful, simply awful. Precious and weak, inconsistent and lop-sided. At the risk of being labelled a homer the Giants simply did not play a more undisciplined game than the Tigers. Invisible interference calls, nudges on the shoulder being called boarding and then the same happens at the other end of the ice and nothing. Smith was the biggest culprit, but sadly as the game went on Rasmussen started calling soft crap as well. I really hope he doesn’t think this is how a WHL game should be called, because the officiating was a mess.
The Giants barely out shot the Tigers 35-33, with both squads getting quality chances on net. The Giants went 1 for 3 on the PP, while the Tigers went 1 for 8. The Gs had great first period, but by the end had to hold on and were not as intense as they started. They matched well versus a top team in East and managed to shutdown the high flying offence of Shinakruk. The effort in their own end of the ice was excellent and when they did make a mistake, Rathjen was there to make some very tough stops.
Not a perfect game by any stretch, but I loved seeing that kind of effort in their own end and on the offensive side. It bodes well for future games. Thrower brought a stabilizing presence to the ice and Kulak had another solid outing. Sward seems to be getting more confidence as the season progresses and scored a gritty greasy Machacek-like goal tonight that is the sort of hockey he should be playing all the time. Traber and Foster had some good shifts playing on the third line as well.
The Giants PK was very good. They closed the gaps and covered the passing lanes, blocked shots and had several offensive forays short-handed. This game could have been a disaster had the Tigers found twine on more of their PP chances, especially since the calls were very weak all game long. I would have liked some more puck support by the boys and less individual forays in the third, but a good building game for the team. Sticking up for one another at end of the game was an important step as well.
The Giants have little time to bask in tonight’s win as they have the Tri-City Americans coming to town tomorrow. The boys will be wearing special White Spot jerseys, Tyler Benson will make his WHL regular season debut and it’s a special country night at the arena. I expect Lee will get the nod between the pipes. The Americans played tonight edging out the Pats 5-3 after leading 4-1 at one point in the game. The puck drops at the Coliseum at 7pm PST.
Three Stars
1. Jared Rathjen
2. Dalton Sward
3. Tommy Vannelli
Dondo’s Hardhat: goes to Dalton Thrower .. I liked his game and how the team gelled in their own end of the ice. A good assist and standing up for team mates at the end of the game. He has brought some real leadership to this team and very valuable on the ice and in the dressing room.