The Icing On The Week: First look at Eastern Conference playoffs
The NHL Stanley Cup Playoffs are well underway and so are the underlying resentments that particular teams or sets of fans have.
Although we didn’t get the Montreal Canadiens-Toronto Maple Leafs match up we all wanted (or the Isles-Caps for me personally) there are a couple of series’ that look to be making the step from simmering tension to outright boiling hatred with the pan being thrown at each other for good measure.
Some of the dislike, or ‘rivalry’ as NBC has been branding it on the odd Wednesday night this season, is historic whilst other series have been ignited due to what has happened since last Tuesday when the post-season started.
Although Boston have a more infamous dislike of the Canadiens their fellow Original Six companions and Round One opponents Toronto would also be named as one of those not on the Christmas Card list each year. Who actually would be on a Boston list is anybody’s guess though.
Rich Peverley discussed this in the Toronto this week when he stated: “It will always be like that, even though we have Montreal we’ve had rivalries with other teams (such as the Flyers)”
And empty rooms.
Game One also saw what was, until Sunday night, arguably the worst hit of the three that have garnered suspensions for the culprits thus far. Andrew Ference’s hit to the head of Mikhail Grabovski incurred a one game ban but yet the series, most likely due to Toronto’s lack of a P.K. Subban or Jordin Tootoo et al, has kept on the right side of sensible.
The Bruins took the first game 4-1 thanks to four unanswered goals to James van Riemsdyk’s early power play (PP)score. The Bruins scored a brace in the first and second whilst neutralising the Leaf’s offence to just twenty shots on goal (SOG), B’s notched forty.
The frustration of the Leafs and their own inability to get on top of a physical Boston side culminated in thirty nine penalties in minutes (PIMs) but they were only punished once in the game by the Bruins PP unit.
Game Two was a complete turnaround for the Leafs and it needed to be. Whether they were jacked up by the Ference hit or it was a more measured approach by the backroom staff to get Nazem Kadri in particular to focus on his lanes a little more; it worked.
They were still outshot 41-32 but importantly outscored the Bruins 2 goals to one in periods two and three with Phil Kessel clinching the game winning goal (GWG).
That will have been a relief for Kessel as he was getting a little bit of criticism from the ever understanding Toronto media after game one.
Scheduled games: Monday, Wednesday, Friday, Sunday and Monday
The other series with only two games played so far is the annual New York Rangers-Washington Capitals meet up. Before the series started John Tortorella, as he presumably is when he takes on any task, was confident. If he is to be right in his assertion the Blue Shirts will make it to Round Two they are going to have to win the series in at least six.
As was the case at TD Garden, Boston the visitors scored the first goal of the series but ultimately fell behind their hosts and never recovered.
Carl Hagelin broke the deadlock for the Rangers in the seventeenth minute but were pegged back by the Caps power play unit in the second with an Alexander Ovechkin wrist shot beating Henrik Lundquist. Two further goals for the Caps including Marcus Johansson’s GWG put paid to any Torts confidence in game one.
Game two saw a fascinating but scoreless regular time stalemate with Lundquist and Braden Holtby seeing off 30 and 24 SOG respectively. It was the Caps PP unit that was the difference again with Mike Green clinching the GWG with assists from Mike Ribiero and Ovechkin.
Scheduled Games: Monday, Wednesday, Friday, Sunday and Monday
The Pittsburgh Penguins – New York Islanders series has weaned the public and media off their grieving process after Columbus Blue Jackets failed to make it to this stage of the season. The desire for an underdog to succeed has been sated thanks to the competitive performances that the Islanders have put in against Ray Shero’s assembled cast of Cup contenders, apart from the first game.
The Isles seemed to freeze whilst the Pens went full gas from the get go. 2-0 after the first became 5-0 by the time the third period had started and although NY managed to maintain the arrears to ‘just’ five for the last twenty minutes their offence could not get past Marc Andre Fleury.
Both teams mustered only 26 shots on goal throughout the game and both bested those numbers with their PIMs. The Isles notched 58 minutes with three game misconducts and the Pens 38 mins with three of their own.
The second game of the series saw Jack Capuano’s charges hit back with a 4-3 win on Sydney Crosby’s return. The third coming of the messiah provided an instant impact with Syd opening his 2013 playoff account 3:19 in after Evgeni Malkin notched just 43 seconds into the game.
They closed the first period 3-1 up but then the Isles scored three unanswered goals to tie the series up. Columbus who?
Sunday night’s game saw the Pens regain control of the series but they did not have everything their own way again. It’s the way they seem to like to do things in the post season.
By the sixth minute of the first they were 0-2 down thanks to Isles goals from Matt Moulson, who has arguably been the player of the series thus far, and Casey Cizikas. However the Pens PP unit, which is just unfairly good at the moment, succeeded three times out of the five opportunities they had.
Scheduled Games: Tuesday, Thursday Saturday and Sunday
The final series in the East has been saved until last for good reason. The Habs and Sens series got off to a typical first game start and then this happened.
As you are no doubt aware this was the second suspension of the post season and whether you agree with the ban or not the hit has changed the series dynamic no end. The Sens took the first game 4-2 after the Habs lost Lars Eller and his teeth, and nose in the second period. They seemed to lose their composure after that and three unanswered goals for Ottawa saw them one game and one man down.
Game two did see them level the series thanks to a 3-1 win with all of the games goals coming in the second. Carey Price put in a superb performance seeing off 29 of the 30 Sens SOG but it was what was said in between the opener and this game that made the headlines.
David Prust referred to Paul Maclean as a “fat bug-eyed walrus” for having the temerity to refer to a player by number rather than name. Maclean had chance to come back at Prust in the next day’s press conference: “I don’t even know who No. 61 is on my team, are you going to hold that against me? There are an awful lot of number combinations and different names. If I hurt [Therrien’s] feelings, oh my gosh, I apologise for that. If that’s the battle of words, I don’t see that. I’m working hard to coach my own team.”
He continued: “[As for Prust], well … ‘bug-eyed,’ I’ve never been called that before. That’s a new one. ‘Walrus?’ That’s too easy. But I’ll tell you one thing: I’m not fat. I might be husky, but I’m not fat. So I took offense to that.”
Prust is more than likely going to receive a ban when he does avenge the arguably clean hit on Eller. He stated in the same press conference in which he resorted to name calling that he hoped Eric Gryba did not get banned. Not so much a thinly veiled threat than proclaiming what he intends to do stark naked on a balcony. Game four, in which Gryba is expected to make his return, is going to be as tasty as the third period in game three.
Before this happened…
A game had broken out which saw the Sens race into a 4-1 lead. The game ended 6-1 which kind of showed that rather than calling out Head Coaches that have forgotten more than Prust has learned he and the Habs should probably get back to playing hockey rather than complaining about 50/50 hits on open ice.
Scheduled Games: Tuesday, Thursday, Saturday and Sunday
More to come from Adam on the Western Conference playoffs but in the meantime check him out at ThePuckBurger.com