a) Start slow - no - make that dead stopped, and then ramp it up when things become desperate.
b) Don't worry about backchecking or limiting chances.
That was the fourth or fifth game in the past couple of weeks that was wide open. Yeah, The Hawks took a lot of shots and got their chances, but so have their opposition in NYC, Brooklyn and at home vs. Ottawa and Colorado.
That's not why they lost tonight but, boy, wouldn't it be great to not have to go like gangbusters to break a tie or win the game? Without two of their best forwards, as well, it's like taking a knife to a gunfight. The Hawks played with three lines, essentially, and we saw the Toews trio out for practically every second shift in the third period. I'm not saying that was the wrong decision but rather that it's always going to be tough when what you're left with is three studs and a handful of occasional scorers.
Corey Crawford was terrific, though. Despite The Hawks carrying the play and winning the possession game for the most part, Crow had far more A+ saves to make than Calvin Pickard at the other end of the ice.
The Hawks were, and especially on many of the power plays, just a fraction of a second ahead of the Avalanche and not quite able to get truly established. As said, apart from some intense flurries of pressure, they controlled the play, but only barely.
Jordin Tootoo is in no position to attempt the sort of stunt play he ultimately screwed up. If he had a few goals on his stat line and The Hawks were up by a few, then go nuts. I haven't seen anything that selfish since Phil Bourque flipped his stick upside down on a penalty shot, so it's no surprise that Tootoo moistened the bench for the remainder of the game. He should be ashamed of himself.
Oh well, have a good holiday-days-off-time. Hopefully we'll see Hoss and Large Arthur back on Tuesday and can then resume our regular programming.
No comments:
Post a Comment