dondo
11-23-2014, 01:56 AM
A bit better effort in the third, but some poor plays ruined what might have been a decent game. The game started out with some grit and feisty-ness, but after several mutual roughing calls the play settled down. My least favourite part of the game was how little the Giants challenged the net and the Cougars back-up goalie. Man sometimes we make some dumb unforced errors. I think the boys should be above some of the dumb plays I see consistently.
Cougars Scratch Giants
Vancouver 3 Prince George 4
I would like to say that the guys gutted it out and just fell short, but that wouldn’t be the truth. The players were very careless in this one, they let a back-up goalie with poor numbers, who when he was here last time they shredded 9-1, off the hook. When the Giants started this season they made some mistakes, but they were carrying the puck into the zone, active on the forecheck and took shots. Lots of shots. They averaged over 40 shots a game. In this one they should have been taking shots. Lots of shots, but they didn’t. They looked for the perfect play, over-passing and generally not threatening the front of the net. Not because the defense of the Cougars was so good, but because the Giants were not committed to scoring. Their focus was not to score, but to minimize damage. They played scared and soft for the majority of the game. They did not drive to the net, but made that oh so irritating button-hook as they got into the zone and pass back to a covered player. They had a clear lane to the net and chose to pass to the boards. They were poor at digging the puck out and allowed themselves to be muscled off too easily. When they started the season they had some form of a system, but now it feels like a free-for-all. And then when they were finally back into the game they made a ridiculously idiotic play in front of their own net and gave the puck away. I also really wanted to lay into the reffing tonight, but with the loss it’ll sound more like whining, but to be honest the officiating was piss poor.
It was a fairly balanced opening half of the period, but PG opened the scoring at 12:09. They added another one late in the period when Osipov coughed up the puck, got away with a cross-check and then coughed up the puck again in the slot. Osipov did some good things in this game, but that traffic accident was horrible. The Giants used a second period PP to get one back. Josh Thrower got his first point as a Giant assisting Matt Bellerive on the goal. In the third Popoff took a nice cross-ice feed from Jakob Stukel and pounded it home into an open cage. The look of relief on Popoff’s face was of a thank gawd I didn’t miss that one variety. Not exactly the look you want from a player who should be your top scorer. The second assist went to Joel Hamilton.
The boys are definitely suffering from a crisis of confidence lately and that look was indicative of how deep it has moved. Late in the third Bellerive tied it up battling in front of the net (a rarity for most of the Giants in this game) and having it go off his skate past Tavin Grant. Mason Geertsen took the shot, assisted by Alec Baer. With a tie game and time ticking down in the Giants end Hamilton made the most boneheaded play I have ever seen him make. He was below the goal-line with an outlet up the boards and chose to flip it out front right onto Zach Pochiro’s stick. The Cougar player was all alone and easily picked the top corner from the sweet spot in the slot. What a horrible way to lose a game and cough up an almost sure point they desperately needed. 1:12 left and there was not a worse play to be made. I just don’t get it. I get mistakes, but I don’t get that - there was no outlet, no open Giant to receive the pass and utterly no reason to make that play. Was the puck chipped off his stick and I didn’t see it? I don’t think so.
Team Notes: Josh Thrower saw his first ice-time in a Giants uni and he looked good. Big and mobile and appeared pretty decent around his own net. Some line shake-ups that I didn’t actually understand. Houck, Foster and Benson. Hamilton Popoff and Stukel and Sward Bellerive and Baer. I guess it was good for Bellerive, but when Foster, Benson and Bellerive had such chemistry before the U-17s and Benson’s injury, why not reunite them?
Fight Night: Dakota Odgers v Aaron Macklin – the fight came 12 seconds into the game and was deemed premeditated by the officials so both players were given game misconducts as well as 5 for fighting. First of all it’s a stupid rule and secondly it actually came out of a hockey play, not some jawing before the puck and an instant gloves off start. I still think these rules around fighting in this league and the entire CHL to be ridiculous. It certainly didn’t irritate the 4000plus fans in the arena who were cheering heartily and might have motivated the home team to step it up. I guess I am too old school for where the game is going, but where the game is going is boring, riddled with penalties and at times unwatchable.
Zebra Cage: Tyler Adair and Dexer Rasmussen. Paint a giant L on Adair’s head. I challenge you to explain to me why you called a 4 minute spearing play on a player trying to lift the stick. Spearing is a deliberate vicious act and is pointedly obvious. That was an incidentally graze of a hockey sweater in the act of trying to lift a stick. There’s a massive difference. They both let a lot go and then called equally soft stuff as penalties. The Cougars were actually running pick plays all night long and yet one interference call was made. My favourite was the Cougar player jumping out the box and obstructing the player already out of the other box from getting into the play with no call. The reffing wasn’t the reason for the loss, but it didn’t help.
The Giants were badly out shot 34-22 by the visiting Cats. The Giants were single digits in every period more because they weren’t shooting when they had some open looks than the defense of the Cougars. The Giants were 1 for 5 on the PP, while the Cougars went 0 for 4. The Gs only had 5 shots in the middle frame and you just cannot win as an under-skilled team if you don’t put a lot of rubber on the net. We actually are not so under-skilled. Our defense has a tough time and needs some seasoning and the boys need a better system to work, but we are not without skill. We just need a way to consistently play up our potential and stop taking off periods at a time.
I find it interesting that Ward still says he’s not worried and that what he is hearing on the bench is positive and the right things, whatever that means. He’s also eager to get on the road so the boys can get away from distractions and gel as a squad. Hands up all of you who have heard this before (exponentially multiple times). Sadly the Giants are worse on the road than they are at home, although that pendulum is rapidly swinging in the other direction. I truly hope that the guys find some form of chemistry on the road, but to be honest I am not very optimistic. The thing is that we need some sort of success on the road if we hope to pull ourselves out of our current doldrum.
The Giants start their road swing through the Central Division on Tuesday in Medicine Hat. The Tigers home barn is a notoriously tough building in which to play. From there they go to Lethbridge, Edmonton and then Calgary for a four games in five nights road swing. Looking at the line-up I am nervous that this could be a disastrous roadsie. I hope I am wrong. The puck drops in Medicine Hat at 6pm PST ( 7pm local).
Three Stars
1. Brad Morrison
2. Matt Bellerive
3. Zach Pochiro
Dondo’s Hardhat: goes to Matt Bellerive .. for a couple of goals and some decent work in front of the net.
Cougars Scratch Giants
Vancouver 3 Prince George 4
I would like to say that the guys gutted it out and just fell short, but that wouldn’t be the truth. The players were very careless in this one, they let a back-up goalie with poor numbers, who when he was here last time they shredded 9-1, off the hook. When the Giants started this season they made some mistakes, but they were carrying the puck into the zone, active on the forecheck and took shots. Lots of shots. They averaged over 40 shots a game. In this one they should have been taking shots. Lots of shots, but they didn’t. They looked for the perfect play, over-passing and generally not threatening the front of the net. Not because the defense of the Cougars was so good, but because the Giants were not committed to scoring. Their focus was not to score, but to minimize damage. They played scared and soft for the majority of the game. They did not drive to the net, but made that oh so irritating button-hook as they got into the zone and pass back to a covered player. They had a clear lane to the net and chose to pass to the boards. They were poor at digging the puck out and allowed themselves to be muscled off too easily. When they started the season they had some form of a system, but now it feels like a free-for-all. And then when they were finally back into the game they made a ridiculously idiotic play in front of their own net and gave the puck away. I also really wanted to lay into the reffing tonight, but with the loss it’ll sound more like whining, but to be honest the officiating was piss poor.
It was a fairly balanced opening half of the period, but PG opened the scoring at 12:09. They added another one late in the period when Osipov coughed up the puck, got away with a cross-check and then coughed up the puck again in the slot. Osipov did some good things in this game, but that traffic accident was horrible. The Giants used a second period PP to get one back. Josh Thrower got his first point as a Giant assisting Matt Bellerive on the goal. In the third Popoff took a nice cross-ice feed from Jakob Stukel and pounded it home into an open cage. The look of relief on Popoff’s face was of a thank gawd I didn’t miss that one variety. Not exactly the look you want from a player who should be your top scorer. The second assist went to Joel Hamilton.
The boys are definitely suffering from a crisis of confidence lately and that look was indicative of how deep it has moved. Late in the third Bellerive tied it up battling in front of the net (a rarity for most of the Giants in this game) and having it go off his skate past Tavin Grant. Mason Geertsen took the shot, assisted by Alec Baer. With a tie game and time ticking down in the Giants end Hamilton made the most boneheaded play I have ever seen him make. He was below the goal-line with an outlet up the boards and chose to flip it out front right onto Zach Pochiro’s stick. The Cougar player was all alone and easily picked the top corner from the sweet spot in the slot. What a horrible way to lose a game and cough up an almost sure point they desperately needed. 1:12 left and there was not a worse play to be made. I just don’t get it. I get mistakes, but I don’t get that - there was no outlet, no open Giant to receive the pass and utterly no reason to make that play. Was the puck chipped off his stick and I didn’t see it? I don’t think so.
Team Notes: Josh Thrower saw his first ice-time in a Giants uni and he looked good. Big and mobile and appeared pretty decent around his own net. Some line shake-ups that I didn’t actually understand. Houck, Foster and Benson. Hamilton Popoff and Stukel and Sward Bellerive and Baer. I guess it was good for Bellerive, but when Foster, Benson and Bellerive had such chemistry before the U-17s and Benson’s injury, why not reunite them?
Fight Night: Dakota Odgers v Aaron Macklin – the fight came 12 seconds into the game and was deemed premeditated by the officials so both players were given game misconducts as well as 5 for fighting. First of all it’s a stupid rule and secondly it actually came out of a hockey play, not some jawing before the puck and an instant gloves off start. I still think these rules around fighting in this league and the entire CHL to be ridiculous. It certainly didn’t irritate the 4000plus fans in the arena who were cheering heartily and might have motivated the home team to step it up. I guess I am too old school for where the game is going, but where the game is going is boring, riddled with penalties and at times unwatchable.
Zebra Cage: Tyler Adair and Dexer Rasmussen. Paint a giant L on Adair’s head. I challenge you to explain to me why you called a 4 minute spearing play on a player trying to lift the stick. Spearing is a deliberate vicious act and is pointedly obvious. That was an incidentally graze of a hockey sweater in the act of trying to lift a stick. There’s a massive difference. They both let a lot go and then called equally soft stuff as penalties. The Cougars were actually running pick plays all night long and yet one interference call was made. My favourite was the Cougar player jumping out the box and obstructing the player already out of the other box from getting into the play with no call. The reffing wasn’t the reason for the loss, but it didn’t help.
The Giants were badly out shot 34-22 by the visiting Cats. The Giants were single digits in every period more because they weren’t shooting when they had some open looks than the defense of the Cougars. The Giants were 1 for 5 on the PP, while the Cougars went 0 for 4. The Gs only had 5 shots in the middle frame and you just cannot win as an under-skilled team if you don’t put a lot of rubber on the net. We actually are not so under-skilled. Our defense has a tough time and needs some seasoning and the boys need a better system to work, but we are not without skill. We just need a way to consistently play up our potential and stop taking off periods at a time.
I find it interesting that Ward still says he’s not worried and that what he is hearing on the bench is positive and the right things, whatever that means. He’s also eager to get on the road so the boys can get away from distractions and gel as a squad. Hands up all of you who have heard this before (exponentially multiple times). Sadly the Giants are worse on the road than they are at home, although that pendulum is rapidly swinging in the other direction. I truly hope that the guys find some form of chemistry on the road, but to be honest I am not very optimistic. The thing is that we need some sort of success on the road if we hope to pull ourselves out of our current doldrum.
The Giants start their road swing through the Central Division on Tuesday in Medicine Hat. The Tigers home barn is a notoriously tough building in which to play. From there they go to Lethbridge, Edmonton and then Calgary for a four games in five nights road swing. Looking at the line-up I am nervous that this could be a disastrous roadsie. I hope I am wrong. The puck drops in Medicine Hat at 6pm PST ( 7pm local).
Three Stars
1. Brad Morrison
2. Matt Bellerive
3. Zach Pochiro
Dondo’s Hardhat: goes to Matt Bellerive .. for a couple of goals and some decent work in front of the net.