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Hmm... it's been almost a month. I suppose I should write something about this team.
Overall, the Canes are 5-6-3 with 13 points - enough to gain them 11th in the Eastern Conference and 4th in the Southeast. This is slightly worse than last year around this time, where the Canes were 7-7-0 and 10th in the East. Oh boy.
I haven't been keeping up with the team as much as normal... but what I've been able to listen to and read about on the internet does not give me warm and fuzzy feelings. Eric Staal, our wonderful captain, is taking after the last captain in that he has the worst plus/minus in the league at -16. (Out of all the things to take after Brind'Amour in, he chooses the plus/minus...) He also only has 5 points through 14 games and hasn't gotten a point in the last five, which is not necessarily the rate that we want our star player to be producing at.
Another alarming trend for the Canes is that they seem to not have enough fire in the game (specifically the last two losses).
"I don't have an explanation for it, but we did not have the fire in order to win that game," Carolina coach Paul Maurice said. "And that's the bottom line. Whether it's your passing, your hitting, whatever it is."
The above quote was taken from the recap from the Washington loss on Friday. The part that is concerning to me is the "I don't have an explanation for it" section - he's the coach, he ought to have a reason for why the team plays like crap. Granted, this is coming from someone who was hoping the Canes would completely tank so that Maurice was fired - but it really really frustrates me to be reading these sorts of quotes. Because what happened after the Washington game? The Canes turned around and lost to Dallas in a game that wasn't even really a game after going down early. You would expect to see some change, but apparently that's too much to ask.
I go back to a game two weeks ago, where the Canes lost in a shootout to the Ottawa Senators. The led the Senators in shots the first period, and I actually had a warm and fuzzy feeling about the team. They then allowed Ottawa to score two goals in the second and the team generally plays like crap from there on until five minutes left in the the third when Ruutu scored a fluke goal. I don't think I've ever been so frustrated at a game I wasn't watching. Listening to Chuck K call this game was like listening to every poor game from last season. The Canes can't score and only play at tops 20 minutes of good hockey, hoping that a last minute drive will pull them out of a hole.
Because this team seems like the exact same team as last year, with some cast changes. They're frustratingly inconsistent and seem to be going nowhere. I don't see anything changing, which is not good as the present is not looking particularly positive. I really really hope they get rid of Maurice - I hate to see anyone out of a job, but I really don't see what option the team has. Nothing is different. Nothing is exciting. Nothing is making me want to turn off Pandora and listen to the Canes while I work. I know that waiting for me is a team with a lack of passion, at least until the third period when it could be too late.
So, yeah, that's my bitter monthly update.
Hockey is finally here, which is great because it means the start of a brand new season, where fans all across the league can forget about the past and look forward to the future and a clean slate.
Or, if you're a Canes fan, you can be horribly reminded of exactly what kept you out of the playoffs last season. Namely the Tampa Bay Lightning beating the snot out of us in our own building.
Yep, it was the same old same old in Raleigh on Friday night, when the Canes lost 5-1 to the Lightning.
The good things:
- Tailgating is amazing, and Friday provided a great day for it. Warm temperatures, sunny skies, and absolutely delicious food on the grill. It was definitely nice to be back and tailgating before the game.
- Jeff Skinner is so awesome. He pretty much created the entire scoring play of the game by himself. He is the shining light among darkness when I think about this game and our chances for the season.
The bad things:
- Eric Staal played like crap. He didn't seem to really be pressing for the puck at all, ever.
- Jussi Jokinen took a stupid penalty that gave Tampa a goal. Unsportsmanlike conduct is always stupid, but shooting the puck at the ref is several kinds of stupid.
- The Canes appeared to give up after Tampa got their third goal. Actually, overall, this game did not have the effort I'd have liked to see from a team that was supposedly still fuming about being knocked out of the playoffs.
Luckily (I suppose), the Opening Night game was not the only one that the Canes played this weekend. They also played last night against the C[r]apitals, losing in overtime 4-3.
The Canes looked a lot better in this one, showing a lot of fire in parts. Eric Staal, for one, picked up his game significantly, scoring the first two goals for the Canes. I'm really glad the Canes were able to play so closely with Washington, as Washington is supposed to be one of the better teams in the East this year. That being said, stupid penalties did the Canes in again, the game winner coming off of a power play goal.
So what do I think of these new 2011-2012 Canes? They look a lot like last year's Canes. Which isn't ideal. During the Washington broadcast I caught Tripp Tracy saying something along the lines of "that's the Cardiac Canes again". And honestly, I don't think that's a good thing. Is a little bit of consistency too much to ask? Apparently so.
So, yeah, I guess Opening Night didn't really put me in an optimistic mood for the Canes this season. But that's to be expected, when the first hockey you see of a team is the same kind of hockey that was a let down last season.
Things haven't quite gone the Canes way the past two games.
Back before the Christmas break the Hurricanes lost 3-2 to Montreal, and last night they lost by the same score to the C[r]apitals. Both were games that the Canes could have won, and both featured questionable calls by the referees.
For the Montreal game, things were looking up when Erik Cole scored the second Canes goal of the night to put the team ahead by one. Then, nine seconds later, he hit Jaroslav Spacek from behind which earned a five-minute major boarding penalty - the Canadiens scored two goals on that powerplay and never looked back. I'm not entirely sure that the hit deserved a major penalty, but certainly the hit and the call cost the Canes the game.
For the Washington game, the questionable call came in the first period. Tim Gleason received a five minute major for charging and a game misconduct after a clean hit on Mathieu Perreault. It looked pretty rough in real time, but the replay obviously shows Gleason hitting with the shoulder pad, not the elbow... and definitely not charging across the ice for the hit. Looks like the refs were penalizing the amount of blood on the ice from Perreault's broken nose, not the actual play.
The penalty didn't have quite the obvious effect on the game that Cole's did, although I'm sure the Canes would have loved to have Gleason's services later in the game. My peeve for the game was the lackluster effort given in the last few minutes of the game - the Canes were only down by one and had ample opportunity to try for a goal, but it just didn't seem like they had the necessary jump in their step.
So, for those of you keeping track, yep, these two losses do mean that the Canes are back at .500 on the season, 10th in the East and 4th in the Southeast with 34 points. This three game losing streak essentially negates whatever had been gained by the four game winning streak, and the Canes are back where they started.
For me this is frustrating, because the past few games are the first good look I've had at the Canes this season - actually viewing them in action - and I have to say that they're not that bad of a team. They do have the talent to score, but apparently just can't get it done. They're light years ahead of how they looked last season... but if that only means a .500 record, how much better is that? It certainly isn't enough to gain them a playoffs spot, and if they can't make the playoffs, how different is that from last season?
Upcoming this week are back-to-back games in Toronto and Ottawa, then home against the Devils New Year's Day. Hopefully these are all easily beatable teams - if they're not, I will be doubting how serious a playoffs berth can be. However, beating the other bottom dwellers could signify the beginnings of a nice win streak - but hopefully my optimistic side isn't betraying me too much.
Erik Cole stats (23rd): 1 goal
On the season: 7 goals, 8 assists
Chad LaRose stats (23rd): 1 goal
On the season: 7 goals, 6 assists
I didn't do a weekly recap last week NOT because I was lazy, but because I wanted to provide my loyal readers with a special double issue - twice the amount of information packed into one week!
(Don't you hate when print magazines pull that crap? I do. But I wouldn't be too optimistic that the next post will be next week - unfortunately college has these things called exams...)
So, let's enter the time machine and recap what's happened since the day before Thanksgiving:
- Canes lost to the C[r]apitals 3-2, despite coming back and scoring two goals in the third period to tie it up.
- Canes won 3-0 over Boston. They looked pretty awesome, which was surprising, as the Canes have generally looked like crap when they play against teams that are above us in the standings this season. Cam Ward also walked away with his first shutout of the year. All three goals came on the power play, which was remarkable because at the time Boston had the best penalty kill in the league.
- Canes lost to the C[r]apitals 3-2, despite coming back. And, no, I didn't get lazy and just copy the first bullet - this game the Canes lost in a shootout. Canes haven't been looking too good in shootouts of late - almost no goals scored in them. I'm hoping this isn't like two seasons ago where the Canes had an abysmal time in the shootouts. I'm too lazy to look up the exact facts, but I believe Rod Brind'Amour had the only shootout goal for about three-quarters of the season. Isn't it sad that I'm just hoping that this season isn't as bad as previous ones?
- Canes then lost 4-1 to the Stars, a game where I just kind of shook my head listening to Chuck Kaiton described the rapid succession of goals for Dallas early in the second period.
- Canes won in OT over Colorado 2-1, the winning goal being scored by Brandon Sutter.
- Finally, the Canes lost 5-2 against the Predators last night. Depressing fact: Cam Ward has not won a game against Nashville in his career.
So where does this leave the Canes? They're currently 4th in the Southeast and 9th in the Conference with 25 points. However, they're not really that close to the 8th place Thrashers who have 31 points, and their record is decidedly mediocre at one game under .500. Pretty much, if you were to look up "meh" in the dictionary, the definition would certainly reference this team. They play decently, but most of the time not amazing - but they're definitely not anywhere near as poor as last season. Really, I think they need to go on some sort of win streak, just to get them over the hump of being a .500 team.
Will it happen this week? They play Dallas again and the Blues after a long five day break. I wouldn't be surprised if we continue our crappy play against them, but hopefully the Canes will win over the Blues. So, nope, I'm not predicting anything remarkable this week.
Erik Cole stats (Nov 28th): 1 goal
On the season: 5 goals, 6 assists
Yesterday was the end of the first month of hockey (perhaps the only good thing of fall, in my opinion - temperatures really shouldn't ever go below 70). October has left the Canes at an even .500, 10th in the East and 4th in the Southeast Division with ten points. In other words, leaps and bounds above last year (do you sense a theme this year?), but overall not spectacular.
This past week we saw the Canes first two games at the RBC Center, and, uh, let's just say that it may not be a bad thing that tonight's game is on the road against Philadelphia. Goose eggs were lain in both the opener against the C[r]apitals and Saturday's game against the Penguins.
Perhaps the Washington game wasn't as bad as the 3-0 score would allow you to believe - I was able to view it thanks to living in C[r]apital country. The first goal was kind of a fluke, Cam Ward being run over outside the crease (and, yes, unfortunately he was outside of the crease, resulting in no goalie interference). Niklas Backstrom put Washington up by two just over midway into the third and then sealed the game with an empty net goal. Michal Neuvirth also looked really good for being Washington's fourth goalie or some similar absurd number.
However, while the game was closer than the score would indicate, I didn't really see anything to write home about from a Canes' perspective. Jeff Skinner continues to impress, but not much else really stood out. Pretty lackluster for a home opener performance, to be honest.
Speaking of Jeff Skinner, he really broke out in Friday's game against the Rangers. Skinner scored two goals and had an assist on Erik Cole's game winner. He seems to be a player that whenever he's on the ice he does something noticeably beneficial to the team (Granted, I've watched all of two games, but the point still remains that this guy looks to be a beast).
Finally, to wrap up the week, the Canes lost by another 3-0 tally at home to Pittsburgh. Let's just say that our current 0-2 home record is not really thrilling this Caniac right now. Yes, it is extremely early in the season, but I, and I think most of the Caniac Nation, would prefer the Canes to not become a road-only team. Especially when I think back to the season we won the Cup - let's just say that the 31-8-2 home record definitely helped. But I think that might be reading way too far into things.
But attempts to improve the home record (or, heck, score a goal at home) will have to wait until Wednesday against the Islanders. Tonight the Canes face Philly away - a Daniel Briere-less Flyers team as Briere was suspended three games for cross-checking an Islanders players straight in the mouth. Look at the YouTube video if you, like me, love to dislike Briere (and Carcillo as well). Hopefully the Canes can stay away from any Flyers thuggery and continue with their good away record.
Erik Cole stats (Thursday): 1 goal, 1 assist
On the season: 2 goals, 4 assists
Sorry, guys. I've been a bad blogger of late. Unfortunately I have been positively swamped and I haven't been able to keep up with a rapid rate of games this past week.
So, let's kick it back 8 days to the Canes OT W over Pittsburgh 3-2. They won the game on a wicked shot from Jamie McBain with about a second left in overtime. Considering the fact that McBain has 6 points in 7 games with the team, I'd say he's looking to be an asset on defense.
Then the Canes lost to Buffalo at home the next day 5-3. Buffalo scored three goals in 7 minutes in the second to turn the tide their way. I wasn't able to catch any of this game, but any loss to the Banana Slugs Sabres leaves a bad taste in my mouth.
The Canes also lost to the Lightning 3-2 in overtime. I wasn't happy with the outcome (St. Louis only 29 seconds into OT), but I was extremely pleased when both Erik Cole and Chad LaRose scored within 20 seconds during the second period.
Tuomo Ruutu's season ended on Thursday with shoulder surgery. He had apparently been playing through the pain for a while, and he's expected to be out 4-5 months. I guess it's a good thing that we're not in the playoffs - his loss would be devastating.
Then came the Canes victory over the C[r]apitals in a shootout - a game I got to watch! And let me just say that I find it amazing that we can play Washington like this and then lose immediately afterwards.
An interesting theme of the game was rookie defensemen scoring. The Canes came out fast in the first period with a nice shot by Jamie McBain, and then followed it up with Bryan Rodney's first NHL goal about seven minutes later. Getting a 2-0 lead in the first is always a good thing when you're going up against the best team in the East. For the C[r]apitals, John Carlson also scored his first goal, although unfortunately it had to be the tying goal in the third.
Then came the hero of the night - Chad LaRose won the game by scoring on his first ever shootout attempt. After much jubilation my reaction was: Seriously? This guy has never had a shootout attempt in his career? I mean, a few seasons ago you would have thought that the Canes would've tried anything to get a shootout goal.
Maybe this means LaRose will be a regular in the shootout rotation? Doubtful - but wouldn't that be awesome?
And then, after that great win against Washington, the Canes lose 4-0 to the menial Thrashers. I guess they felt they should keep someone's playoff dreams alive, since their poor play crushed ours in November.
So what did we learn after this week? The Canes like to either win in a tight OT/SO game, preferably beating a giant, or they like to be blown out by teams.
Oh, and, despite my fervent adoration for Chuck Kaiton (he's the man!), watching games on TV is still superior (for both attention span and remembering what happened). Even if I do have to put up with the Washington announcers.
Erik Cole stats (Tuesday): 1 goal
On the season: 9 goals, 3 assists
Chad LaRose stats (Last Saturday): 1 assist
(Tuesday): 1 goal
On the season: 7 goals, 10 assists
A lot of games have happened in the past week, and once again I find myself apologizing for a late recap. Unfortunately they don't schedule physics test around breaks in the hockey schedule.
Let's go back to last week, where the Canes, coming off of an overtime win over the C[r]apitals, also managed to somehow pull out another overtime win against the Pittsburgh Penguins, winning by a tally of 4-3. I say "somehow" due to the fact that the Canes came out extremely sluggish and got behind 2-0 only 6 minutes into the first period. It looked like the Canes were feeling effects from playing hard the night before, but luckily they snapped out of it with goals by Whitney and Boychuk to end the period 2-2.
The Canes kept it close, and Brian Pothier knocked in a quick goal in the overtime period to win the game (off of a nice pass by Ray Whitney - Ray is certainly shining especially bright now that there's little other starpower on this team).
Before I go on to the next recap, let me vent a little. Hey, Pittsburgh fans who attended the game at the RBC Center (there were a lot of them, probably because the game was matched up against ACC basketball involving a team wearing blue...): Wearing Steelers gear does not equate to wearing Penguins gear. Yes, I get it, all of your city's teams have the same colors. But maybe you could wear paraphernalia for the game which you're actually attending? I'm especially talking to the people waving the football-specific Terrible Towel. If you want to show up and cheer for the opposing team, that's cool, but maybe you could at least try and look like you didn't stumble into the wrong stadium?
So, of course, with back-to-back wins against Washington and Pittsburgh, some people immediately get the idea that this is a playoff team and we can run the table, blah blah blah. For those of you who think that, please look at the next two games as evidence to the contrary: A 4-0 beatdown against Phoenix and a 5-2 loss to the Bruins. Both were poorly played games against teams the Canes needed to beat to keep their playoff hopes *snort* alive. The Canes especially needed to play well against the Bruins, as Boston is holding on to the 8th seed - but apparently only Erik Cole got that memo, contributing both goals for the Canes.
But, not a team to quit, which after this season I'm not sure is a good thing anymore (goodbye, good draft pick... although I seriously doubt we could have out-tanked the Oilers for the number one...), the Canes pulled out another win against the C[r]apitals, winning in overtime 4-3 in a wild one last night. It looked like Chad LaRose had put the dagger in with 1:35 left, but Washington had to score with 9 seconds left to send it into OT, where Ray Whitney scored the winner.
I understand optimism, and most of the times I am hopelessly optimistic when it comes to my sports team, but let's be real. The Canes are not a playoff team. They do not deserve to be in the playoffs. If by some miracle from above they make it in, it says more about the weakness of the rest of the Eastern Conference than it does about this team. Yes, apparently they are kryptonite to the C[r]aptials this year. But for every win against Washington, there's a blowout to an opponent they should have beaten. This season is not something that I'll want to look back on, and I don't want to extend the misery with an ill-conceived playoff run. Harsh words, perhaps, but true ones.
(Playoffs? You kidding me? Playoffs?)
Erik Cole stats (Last Thursday): 1 assist
(Tuesday): 2 goals
On the season: 8 goals, 3 assists
Chad LaRose stats (Thursday): 1 goal
On the season: 6 goals, 9 assists
So I'm smack in the middle of my Spring Break, and I will say that I am enjoying the nice weather around here. Some nice hockey too, believe it or not.
Starting with last week, the first game after the trade deadline, the Canes increased their winning streak to seven with a 4-1 win over the Ottawa Senators. Manny Legace had a shutout going until former Cane Matt Cullen scored on him.
Of course, every good thing must eventually end. The Canes lost the following game to the Florida Panthers 4-1. Of course, this is the first game in a month and a half where I had actually seen the Canes, and of course they were horrible.
I would also like to find out the stats of how many goals Cory Stillman has scored against us since going to the Panthers. It seems to me as if he has scored in almost every game - apparently he was taking notes while he was with the Canes.
The Canes rebounded by beating the snot out of Atlanta 4-0 on Sunday. It was the first shutout of the season for the Canes - which is incredibly depressing.
Tonight the Canes played an excellent game against the Washington C[r]apitals, forcing them to overtime. And, oddly enough, the last regulation loss for the Eastern Conference-leading team came against the Canes. Can you believe that? Are we the kryptonite to the C[r]apitals? That's actually kind of beast.
I was extremely surprised while watching this game. The Canes were playing with Washington - an action-packed end of the third period with many chances on both ends. I hadn't seen that kind of good hockey from the Hurricanes in an incredibly long time - and to think that this is happening with a good bit of our team traded away!
Hopefully the Canes can keep the mojo going for tomorrow night's matchup against Pittsburgh - I look forward to booing Sidney Crosby and his Canadian gold medal. Go America!
Chad LaRose stats (Thursday): 1 goal
(Wednesday): 1 assist
On the season: 5 goals, 9 assists
Two big surprises to report today.
First of all, the Canes beat the C[r]apitals 6-3 on Monday night. Yes, you read that right. Our pathetic, last place team beat the top of the league team. And not just beat, but laid out an ultimate smackdown - the Canes were up 3-0 after the first!
And let me strike from the record the comments I had about Eric Staal playing wing in the last post. Eric Staal can play defense for all I care, if he puts up five points while doing so.
Seriously, I am absolutely floored that this team was able to beat Washington like this. I believe this was their first lost in the Southeast Division - can you believe it?
Another thing that really surprised me was the Olympic team selections that came out today. The Canadian Olympic Committee must have been watching this past game, as Eric Staal made the team. The Finnish Olympic Committe mustn't have watched any Canes games as Jussi Jokinen was not selected to the Finnish team with his counterparts Ruutu and Pitkanen.
I feel really bad for Jokinen because I feel that he has had an excellent season (especially for being on this team) and I think he should have been credited with a spot on the team.
Tomorrow is New Year's Eve and the Canes have their traditional game at the RBC Center. This year it's against the Rangers. Maybe the Canes will have some momentum going into it?
Canes lost in overtime last night to the C[r]apitals 4-3.
Before this game was played, the absolutely horrid news came out that both Erik Cole and Chad LaRose would be placed on injured reserve for lingering injuries. Much wailing and sobbing was heard from this particular blogger because that means she will likely go the whole winter break without seeing both of her favorite players in action.
But, considering that Erik Cole was playing his best hockey while fighting off a lingering injury, I can't help but be hopeful for later on.
Patrick Dwyer and Jiri Tlusty were called up to replace them, and Tlusty was effective in his first game, scoring a goal in the first period. Further continuing the trend of "interesting things happening when I am missing hockey during class", Tim Gleason blocked a puck with his face in the first as well, requiring something like 30 stitches. Being the beast that he is, he came back in the game and tied it up on a breakaway shorthanded goal for the Canes in the third period.
Unfortunately, Gleason's pure bad-assery could not stop the C[r]apitals increasingly good play and the Canes lost in overtime. But we got a point out of the whole thing, so it's not too bad.
Bad news for Michael Leighton, the goalie issues were figured out, and he was sent down to the minors, leaving Manny Legace as Cam Ward's backup.
Canes play again tonight against Ottawa. Maybe they can continue this slight upswing in play that we've seen recently?
The Canes won both back-to-back games this weekend at home, putting them into 6th place in the standings.
The first game was a 5-4 win over the Islanders Friday. I did not see this game, but apparently the Canes gave up four consecutive goals to the Islanders in the second period. Yep, four goals to the worst team in the league. Good thing I wasn't watching. Luckily, they pulled it out, which I suppose is all that matters at this point in the season.
Then came the 4-1 win over the C[r]apitals last night, which was a very well-played game. Washington came out hitting, but the Canes were able to withstand the storm and score in the second period. Then they just took over in the third period, scoring three to put the game out of reach.
Might I say that Anton Babchuk is looking spectacular as of late? Not only has he scored with his excellent slapshot, he also has had a few right down in front of the net, like his in this game. I almost can't believe how good he's looked recently (I mean, seriously, a good defenseman playing consistently for the Canes? Doesn't that sound weird to you?).
The bad news, as it has been for the last few days, is that pretty much everyone around the Canes has two games in hand. But, if everyone wins out (which they won't, but hypothetically), the Canes would still be in eighth place even with the two less games - certainly some good news, as it means the Canes are in a much better place than they had been.
The next game is tomorrow against Florida - a big game for sure.
Erik Cole stats (Friday): 1 assist
With the Canes: 2 goals, 8 assists
On the season: 18 goals, 19 assists
Chad LaRose stats (Friday): 2 goals
(Saturday): 1 assist
On the season: 16 goals, 12 assists
Canes lost in a shootout to the C[r]apitals on Saturday. They didn't play too bad, but it was another case of a point they should have had with a win.
Erik Cole had a very nice goal in the first period to start off the scoring, but the Canes let Washington score three in a row. Luckily they were able to scramble back to a tie, thanks to an excellent Niclas Wallin goal. Unfortunately, that's all they could do, and the C[r]apitals outshot the Canes in the shootout.
Now they don't play until Wednesday, and we have to play the waiting game to see who will win and lose in the East. The Canes still have more games played than most of the others in the East, and are currently in eighth.
*sigh* Why couldn't they win more games earlier in the season?
Erik Cole stats: 1 goal, 1 assist
With the Canes: 2 goals, 6 assists
On the season: 18 goals, 17 assists
Erik Cole is back in a Canes jersey tonight!
I'm so looking forward to seeing him on the ice again!
And, seriously, if the line he gets put on clicks immediately, that will be absolutely frickin amazing. Just imagine what a Ruutu-Staal-Cole line could do!
In my zealous-ness to post on Wednesday, I completely forgot to post a game recap for Tuesday night's game. The Canes had a solid win over the C[r]apitals 5-2, of which I saw none because it was not on TV. But it was a win against a good team, so that definitely counts for something!
Canes are currently tied with Buffalo for ninth, although they technically get the tenth spot. So, obviously, it would be great if the Canes could win tonight against Calgary!
Chad LaRose stats: 1 goal, 1 assist
On the season: 14 goals, 9 assists
Canes got their first win under Paul Maurice (well, at least the second time around) with a 3-1 win over the C[r]apitals yesterday. (3-2 in the 3rd jerseys!)
Canes played pretty well, I thought. They scored first for the first time in... 13 games, I think. Ray Whitney notched two goals and Eric Staal got a goal, something that hasn't happened in a while either.
The bad news is that Anton Babchuk is probably out with some sort of elbow/arm injury. Yes, yet another defenseman went down. But, according to this article, we should be getting Seidenberg back for Thursday, so I don't think the Canes will have to call up any more people from Albany.
Thursday's game is against the Flyers - fourth game in three weeks against them. What is up with that?
Yes, I stole that headline from the Canes' website, and, yes, I took a screenshot of it, because I feel it is such a headline that should be saved for our posterity's sake.
Actually, I find it hilarious. And I need a laugh after the turn this season has taken...
I believe the "Laviolette Watch" has begun. I wouldn't be surprised if we have a new coach soon. I'm not advocating this - I like Laviolette, don't think he's done anything wrong, necessarily - but something has to get the Canes going in the right direction again.
*sigh*
Two crappy losses against two division rivals. What more can I say?
The Canes just appeared to implode on Sunday against the Thrashers: Luckily, I wasn't watching it, as the game wasn't televised. Listening to it was no walk in the part, though.
We finally have everybody back from injury - Pitkanen, Cullen, and Sutter returned - but they certainly didn't do anything to stop the 5-1 rout by the C[r]apitals. The only one who bothered to show up at all was Scott Walker - at least he has a goal to show for it.
I'm at a loss here. Something needs to happen - somebody needs to pull Staal's head out of his rear, specifically - but we can't go on like this. We have more talent than this - why can't we show it?
Next game is tomorrow against Atlanta. I predict the seat gets extremely hot for Lavi if the Canes have another blowout. Hopefully they won't...
The Canes are seriously disappointing me right now.
I did not watch Thursday's meltdown against the C[r]apitals - I chose to go instead to my school's play, an $8 that was worth it both for the quality of the production and the fact that it kept me from throwing something through the TV, as I surely would have done at home.
Yep, the Canes went from leading, to tied, to losing, all within a little under three minutes.
Over and over again, I have stressed that the Canes need to play a full sixty minutes. Here's a perfect case in point.
And my mom says that I should just be happy that the Canes won last night. Yes, they won. Good for them. Came back from a 1-0 deficit in the third period.
But what about the first two periods? They played like crap. That was an utterly lackluster hockey team on the ice last night. To be honest, I'm getting sick of it. I want to see well-executed hockey for the entire game, not just a one-period flurry and the other two periods being merely okay. That's not a way to win a championship, that's for sure.
Granted, the Canes are missing a lot of people due to injury. Hopefully when we get Cullen & Pitkanen back, our power play will finally connect. But Rod Brind'Amour seems completely non-existent on the ice (maybe after-effects of his knee surgeries?), and Eric Staal looked like he took some bad allergy medicine or something - he was not playing anywhere near his best, it just looked like he was going through the motions out there.
A positive thing I have to say today? Well, Peter Laviolette, with the unimpressive win by his hockey team last night, became the winningest American-born NHL hockey coach, surpassing John Tortorella Good for him!
The next game is Sunday against the Thrashers. Hopefully they'll be able to start opening up Lavi's lead on Tortorella...
Canes lost their first preseason game last night against the C[r]apitals 4-1.
They played like crap pretty much the entire time. The game was boring, nothing really exciting or cool happened during it.
No one really stood out, either, except for Joni Pitkanen. He didn't really seem to make much of a presence on the ice - but then I would look to see who took a nice shot and it would be him. Maybe he's like a ninja - you don't see him until he strikes!
Anyways, Niclas Wallin looked like crap. He was a -2 on the night, too.
And the injury bug bit again - Gleason's out with some sort of leg injury. YaY.
Apparently the Canes are tied in their rematch against the C[r]apitals tonight. Hopefully they'll get their act together before the season starts. And hopefully they'll stop getting injured!
*sigh* I just haven't wanted to write anything on here. I think I'm a little hockey-depressed right now...
But, I feel the only way to get over this feeling of abject loss is to power through it, so here goes:
First off - Rutherford's thinly veiled anti-Laviolette comments
My advice to you, Jim (because I know my blog is one of your number one reads...), is to power through the loss and DON'T FIRE LAVIOLETTE! Laviolette is awesome! I even wrote a post about his complete awesomeness here. (If you can call that coherent writing...)
Second - Offseason signings
Jeez... who's even up for free agency this year? Ah well, sign Samsonov, he wants to stay.
Third - The 2008 playoffs
Despite what I think should have happened, the NHL playoffs have continued to go on without the Canes present. No predictions for this season, I've decided (it's sort of too late for that, y'know?). And, who am I rooting for? Whoever is playing the C[r]apitals. Go Flyers! (Sorry, no cool graphics or Southeast Division loyalty this year...
Fourth - ...?
Yeah, no fourth. I guess three's the charm in this post.
Well, it's all up to Florida now.
Yep, Canes lost last night 4-3 to the selfsame Florida Panthers we are now depending on to save our playoff behinds.
Plain and simple, the Canes just couldn't get it done. Not to say that they didn't try - 46 shots says that they at least put some effort into it... but no one was able to get one in when the team needed them to...
Things are looking pretty bleak right now. Our playoff bid is out of our hands - and in the hands of the Florida Panthers who must beat the Washington C[r]apitals tonight if the Canes are to extend their season deeper into the month.
But there's still hope. At least we have that, right?
Chad LaRose stats: 1 assist
On the season: 11 goals, 12 assists
Well, the Canes lost their "must-win" last night 4-1.
So, now the C[r]apitals are tied for the division lead with the Canes. With two games left.
Is anyone else hyperventilating?
Now, granted, all the Canes have to do is win their next two, starting tonight against Tampa. But, I'm slightly worried because they did not impress me at all last night.
Well, actually, y'know who impressed me? Coach Laviolette. He wasn't taking none of that no-call crap from the referees last night (Are these guys blind? AO crosschecks Staal in the stomach a good five seconds after the play is called - I think there's some star-preference going on...). Seriously, if this had been a baseball game, second base would've been thrown across the field, and the rosin bag woulda been tossed like a hand grenade. Good for Lavi! He showed he's a man after my own heart screaming at the refs like that - because that's exactly what I was doing through the TV.
Anyways... I just lost my train of thought. Probably because I was looking for the clip of the aforementioned baseball manager... here's the post I posted it on (waaaay back in '06), but the clip's dead...
Hm... and I don't even think that was the one I was thinking of... maybe i didn't post it... oh well, here's a link.
Right. Train of thought left at station. Choo choo!
Hopefully the Canes will be better than this post tonight!
Choo choo!
