Blues/Flames Postgame
by Kent Wilson on Mar 21, 2009 9:08 AM PDT
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PrintBit of panic erupting in Flamesland after the loss last night. Not sure if it's because the Flames haven't played "meaningful" hockey in awhile or because the manner in which the Flames folded was so disappointing, but Im not as bothered by it myself.
Mainly because I think the team is still playing good hockey. They won the ES possession game again last night and were fudamentally sound for probably 55 of 60 minutes. Unfortunately, as it has been for most of March, St. Louis scored on just about any chance they got (and, heck, that 3rd goal wasn't even a scoring chance). Some issues that I noticed, however:
- The Flames first line is still suspect in it's own end of the rink. The tying goal came during a panic session with Jarome et al on the ice. They're fairly dangerous when they're in the offensive zone, but I'd prefer the first unit be capable at both ends.
- The Blues blocked 19 ES shots. The Flames blocked 6. I've been wrestling with the idea that blocking a lot of shots has value over the long term, but one has to wonder what would have happened last night if the Flames had blocked more and/or the Blues had blocked less.
- I dont know at this point if I'm just looking for it and my expectations are coloring my perceptions, but Phaneuf looks worse every game to me. He can still carry the puck into the zone with authority and create some chances, but he's a disaster everywhere else.
- If vancouver wins tonight, they'll be one point back of the division lead. That said, the Blackhawks are stumbling even more than the Flames and no longer look like an invicible opponent, so seeing them in the first round if worse comes to worst shouldn't be horrible.
- Calgary has allowed a league worst 15 SHG. That's amazing(ly bad).
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Well put but i am still kinda freaking out. I cannot believe they have likely lost division. I assume this because a lot of its based on the 4 B2B’s coming up but its getting to the point where I cant even watch last night.
I disagree to say Phaneuf was terrible. I was explaining to my girl friend that phaneuf isnt actually playing horribly hes just not living up to expectations.. Hes generally at the level of Pardy only no one minds pardys play because he makes 600 000. So essentially Phaneuf is playing like a 600 000 rookie. It would be nice to see him even keep up with Aucoin but thats too much to expect this year.
I still cant believe Kipper lost it for them. I dont know what you do, but maybe Regher (iggy?) lost it on him? I thought the team as a whole played a very solid game. I dont know if I can even watch their remaining 11 games cause I know itll be very discouraging now. WHY DO THEY ALWAYS CHOKE DOWN THE STRETCH? This is actually becoming an annual thing
Phaneuf is being payed 6.5M this year and is coming off a Norris trophy nomination. The expectations are rightfully higher for him.
On an absolute scale, Phaneuf has been bad this year. He has the highest GAON/60 rate on the team (3.45), which is a full goal more per hour than Pardy…and they’ve both played about the same level of competition!
by Kent Wilson on Mar 21, 2009 11:29 AM PDT up reply actions
Just for curiosity sake, does anyone else wonder if the team would have won a bunch of games they lost recently if Sutter didnt make the trade for Jokinen? Im definitely starting to think that way.
Not really. The major issue since the start of the road trip has been goaltending. I dont think the Lombo for Jokinen is the thing that’s made Kipper suddenly awful.
by Kent Wilson on Mar 21, 2009 11:26 AM PDT up reply actions
To an extent it was goal tending yes. But you cannot deny the PK over that road trip looked terrible. Cost them games. Who was the Flames best PKer? It was Lombardi. Jokinen and Leopold, although it doesnt show on ice at all really, may have disrupted the locker room a little. Im not saying this is a fact more a curiosity.
Was Pardy playing left wing last night?
I don’t know, but to my eyes, Pardy is a superior defender when compared to Vandemeer.
Also, Lundemark and Peters are both playing very well given the circumstances. Definitely impressed by Lundemark these past few weeks.
phaneuf
It’s not just you. His coverage on one goal in the Dallas game the other night was unbelievably atrocious. He lost positioning by skating PAST the player he was defending against. It was unbelievable to see it happen. I don’t know what’s going on with his game but there’s no question it’s getting worse.
Kudos to Vancouver for keeping things interesting tonight: they got smoked 5-1 by Phoenix. The official headline makes a big deal out of a fluke goal (the puck went into Vancouver’s empty net while there was a delayed penalty call against Phoenix), but that goal made things 4-0. It seems Vancouver can lose the winnable games as much as we can.
Speaking of VAN...
…Here’s their percentages since that 4-2 win over MTL in February. They’re on the plus side in terms of possession, but it’s not like they’ve been running everyone out the rink. The real difference between them and Calgary over the specified time period is pretty much purely SV%: Luongo has been operating at .930 at ES. Kipper? .890 (!! – notice the Flames are +151 corsi, despite spending a huge amount of time on the road and having a losing record).
by Kent Wilson on Mar 22, 2009 10:14 AM PDT up reply actions
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