Those are my boys, right there. I love those guys.
What a great game. They came out with the same kind of intensity they had early in Game 3, but they kept it up the whole game. They attacked, and they defended. And they didn’t give up.
Modano and Morrow both got goals from the dead slot. Modano must have gotten half his goals this season from that very spot. And with Zubov down in the corner instead of up on the blue line where the defenseman is supposed to be, it’s a perfect setup.
Zubov had a great game. He made some long, slicing passes that turned into some good chances and he assisted on two of the goals. He was doing some of his old dipsy-doodle moves and this time they were working. He seems to be back. And his playoff beard is beautiful.
Dave Tippett did a really good job of mixing things up, using what they’ve learned so far about Detroit. Putting Toby Petersen out there with Joel Lundqvist and Loui Eriksson worked out great. Petersen was all over the place. His line was out there against Zetterberg and Datsyuk most of the time and they did a fine job of defending them and they got a goal out of it. Loui seemed destined to get a goal, the way he was flying.
Well, that’s probably it. There’s an infinitesimal chance the Stars could still do something, but they’d have to win a game first, and I am just not optimistic about that right now.
I’m trying to hold myself back from ranting and raving about my hatred for the Red Wings right now. I may not be very successful. I just want to point out one thing they do that I didn’t even know about, that Doc and Edzo on the Versus broadcast pointed out. Not only do they cheat with subtle picks and goalie interference and such, they also cheat on faceoffs! It’s no wonder they’re 70% in faceoffs. Sheesh.
Still, they won and the Stars lost. The Stars are down 3-0 and things really don’t look good.
I’m a little teary about it right now, but I think I’ll be okay. I sometimes think I’m not acting like a real fan if I’m resigned to their losing and not really upset about it. I mean, I’m sad, but I’m not mad. I’m disappointed, but not by the team, just the situation.
I feel bad for the boys. After the joy of that unbelievable game at home where they eliminated the Sharks in the fourth overtime at one o’clock in the morning, I hate to see them hit this wall. I don’t want them to feel as bad as I know they’re feeling.
I’m not going to berate anybody individually or collectively right now.
It’s small consolation, sure, but the Stars did much better in this game. And I thought they improved as the game went on. They got the penalty kill back into some order, and the power play got them a goal. That one was from Stéphane Robidas, who is still amazing me.
They had A TON of chances that they just didn’t finish. They had a 4-on-1 and passed it one to many times, and unfortunately didn’t have the best breakaway line out there at the time. Nik Hagman has had several breakaways during these two games, yet hasn’t been able to do anything with them. I think if they just keep pushing like they did in Game 2, they’ll start to get rewarded.
Mike Ribeiro shouldn’t have swung his stick like that, but it was not a baseball-swing/two-handed chop to the head or anything as dramatic as that. He smacked Chris Osgood in the chest protector, where he takes twenty slapshot pucks a day, and there’s no way he even felt it, let alone would it have dropped him to the ice to writhe in agony like that. Osgood should be ashamed of that display.
Osgood reached out, blatantly, to clip Ribs as he went by, then tried to claim it was an accident. Then when he was smacked in the padding, he went down like he was hit by a sniper. It was as if he forgot there’s replay or something. Did he really think anybody would believe him?
And Kris Draper was really slathering on the righteous indignation against Ribeiro, apparently forgetting the rib-work he did on Ott about 30 seconds before that.
That wasn’t a great game. I’m certainly willing to admit that. The Stars looked a little sluggish and they stood around a lot. They started out well, but the 5-on-3 did them in.
There’s been plenty of talk about that around here, but I still can’t get over that call. I know it wasn’t what lost the game for them, but it did change its track. The referee called Mark Fistric for roughing when he didn’t do anything that isn’t done a thousand times in a game, just some pushing. Steve Ott came over to join, and got a few free chucks at the guy’s chin (was it Holmstrom? I’m too lazy to go look), but the ref had already called Fistric by then. He wasn’t mistaking Fistric for Ott. A replay showed him tap Fistric on the shoulder before Ott even got over there.
The only thing I’m really feeling about this upcoming Western Conference Finals against the Detroit Red Wings is that I want it to get going. I can’t decide if I’m nervous or scared or confident or delusional.
There is plenty of analysis of the series around the internet and I’m sure they all make good points, but you can pretty much tell if they’ve just been reading the Stars’ box scores or actually watching their games. Most pick the Red Wings, but not all, so I’m not the only one that can’t tell how it’s going to go.
As I’ve said many times, I don’t make predictions. I’m too superstitious, and I know how mean I am to people who make serious, earnest predictions that don’t come true and I don’t want to have to listen to that kind of thing myself.
I will say, though, that I’m not as afraid of the Wings as I was at the beginning of the playoffs and in the regular season. During the season I just found those games on the calendar and marked them as losses before they were even played. And during the first round, my second-most fervent wish for that round was for Detroit to be eliminated so we wouldn’t have to meet them.
But now, two six-game playoff series later, after dispatching the defending Stanley Cup champ Anaheim Ducks, and then kicking out the hugely favored San Jose Sharks fairly handily, I’m not so sure about that any more.
The Stars are just sloppin’ over with confidence, as Daffy Duck would say. It doesn’t seem to be the kind of confidence that gets you stunned by the opposition. I seems to be the kind of confidence you get from actually being a good team, from seeing what the other team is bringing and then turning them back.
It seems only a few writers from the first list were swayed by how handily the Dallas Stars eliminated the defending Stanley Cup Champion Anaheim Ducks. We picked up 8 more on our side.
(The Sports Illustrated guys picked all four rounds at once. And they all picked the Ducks in the first round, so they’re off the list. For some of them, I just couldn’t find their picks for this round. I added a guy from Inside Hockey and Darren Pang with Fox Sports.)
So for Round 2, out of 37 “experts”, 22 picked the Sharks and 14 picked the Stars.
My bet is that it gets out of whack again when the next series starts.
Dallas Morning News
Carlton — Stars in 7
Cowlishaw — Sharks in 6
Heika — Stars in 6
Sherrington — Stars in 6
Taylor — Sharks in 6
The Hockey News
Brophy — Sharks in 6
Campbell — Sharks in 7
Costello — Stars in 6
Dixon — Stars in 6
Fraser — Stars in 7
Kay — Stars in 6
Kennedy — Stars in 6
Proteau — Sharks in 6
What an amazing game! Game 6 was a microcosm of everything that is great about hockey. Fast-paced action, tons of scoring chances, great defensive plays, goalies making spectacular saves at both ends. Everything.
And it was the most exciting thing in all of sports, the marathon overtime game.*
It. Was. Awesome!
Marty Turco looked better than I have ever seen him before. And he’s been looking good during this post-season. That save with the puck under his behind was made even greater by the Sharks celebrating all around him. The mid-air kick save at one point was just as great. He just had too many great saves to list. As Bob Sturm said today on The Ticket, Turco could put together a whole highlight reel just from that game.
Brenden Morrow is showing himself to the world right now. These are the kinds of things we Stars fans have been seeing building in him for the last eight years, and now the whole hockey world is seeing what a stud he is. I cannot tell you how happy I am that he already signed a long-term contract for a lot less than he could be getting if he were a free agent next season. Especially after the season and playoffs he’s having.
Sharks coach Ron Wilson pointed out this morning that Mike Modano is a minus player in the series, and that the Sharks aren’t worried about Modano, they’re more worried about Mike Ribeiro. Modano laughed it off, but it will be interesting to see if he comes through with a big game tonight.
Is that a good idea?
After Game 1, Wilson complained that Modano was barely touched and they needed to make his “life more miserable.” Then Mo got the game-winner in Game 2. Maybe he’s just trying a different tack, since that one didn’t work.
The games are too close together! The Stars can’t recover from the first one in time for the second one, and neither can I.
Game 3 on Tuesday night was the kind that makes hockey great. It was high-tempo and exciting and tense and close and we won. What else could you ask for?
Then Game 4 started less than 24 hours later and it was still exciting and tense, but at a much slower pace and we lost. So it left a lot to ask for.
Game 4 in any series is hard to win. While only two teams in the history of the NHL have ever come back from a 3-0 deficit to win a series, I’m sure a LOT of them have won the fourth game before eventually being eliminated. The Sharks are on the edge of the cliff. They didn’t have to worry about their pride, since things were already terrible, or whether they’d have anything left for future playoff games, so they could come out swinging. There was no reason to hold anything back.
Now that we’ve seen what they’ve got when they’re cornered, hopefully we can beat them.
