Playoffs-Hitmen vs 1st Round Opponent

[RunTheGoalie]

Run The Goalie:

As someone who criticizes the ref at every opportunity both here and on Calgarypuck I laughed when I saw today's gamesheet. You would have been screaming bloody murder if it had been the other way around wouldn't you? I cannot believe the Lethbridge parade to the penalty box with not one Hitmen going until late in the second period. Wow. Now you don't usually see such lobsided calls outside of a Vancouver Canucks home game when they are trailing.

edit: Not that I'm having a go at you, RTG. Just found it amusing. I know that we both agree that the standard of refereeing in general is pretty low.

Absolutely, and I have no problem with any Lethbridge fan being pissed at MacIssac yesterday. He didn't give them a single break. The one penalty that really pissed even me off was when he T'd up the Hurricanes coach for yelling at MacIssac for not blowing the whistle when Farmanara took a shot to the ankle, afterwhich Calgary quickly scored.

Now, MacIssac made the right call there, as Farmanara got right back up and tried to play his position, despite being obviously hobbled, and Lethbridge never gained posession of the puck. But seriously, let them vent a little. The referees in this series have been way too quick with handing out unsportsmanlike conduct and misconduct penalties. They should be spending more time considering why both teams are upset at them.

[Rebel66]

Are you saying the Canucks get a break when trailing? Tell me what usually puts them behind --- is a steady stream of penalties!! And I'm not a Canuck fan - just live here. When you have a Bertuzzi on your team you are maked believe me.

Well, we can agree on one thing; I'm not a Canucks fan either!

[ScottyWazz]

Now, it's a hurry up and wait formation as the East wraps up their two spots. I was surprised to see Schultz get the GWG and not be on the power play, but of course, that's when the power play shoots the pucks. Good showing by the Hurricanes in this series and definitely a wake-up call for the Hitmen if they think they'll cruise through the playoffs.

Also, I saw this in Saturday's game, but is it odd to anyone else that Kisio won't set up Schultz and Carson on their off-wings to get a good one-timer?? Having to go across their body to catch a pass not only takes time off the clock, but also is a dangerous play.

[Nielson11]

As good as Pogge played in the last couple games.

I still think Leclerc was the better keeper in the series....not bad for 16 year old.

[ScottyWazz]

Leclerc is going to be a stud when he gets more games in. The one thing that he needs to work on is on his rebound control. He seemed to pop shots out back to the blue-line on some shots, but he'll get that with time. He's definitely going to be something in the next few years though.

[RunTheGoalie]

Well, the kid took 50 shots and still kept his team in it. Even given the Hitmen's offensive woes, that is a pretty damned impressive feat.

Scotty - I noticed the same thing with our powerplay on Saturday. Not only did they not cross over at any point, they very rarely even tried to get themselves in position to shoot. Very easy for the opposing team to defend against you when it is so easy to see that there is no chance of a shot coming. Kisio et al really need to take a look at that going into the next round.