A very exciting day with both winning teams dominating their oppositions; forcing a game 7 after they were put on the brink of elimination.
Washington Capitals vs New York Rangers: Washington wins 5-3 (Series tied 3-3)
Don't let the score fool you: Washington led after two periods 5-1. Two third period goals by New York, including the third in the dying seconds, were meaningless as the Capitals simply laid back and let the win come to them. Henrik Lundqvist was pulled for the second straight game since he let in all five goals. The story of the game was secondary scoring, as Ovechkin only had 1 point, which was the fourth goal of the night (off a deflection as well). The Rangers seemed lost, confused, and not ready to play hockey, and we'll see whether they can stop the bleeding in game 7.
New Jersey Devils vs Carolina Hurricanes: Carolina wins 4-0 (Series tied 3-3)
Ray Whitney, Eric Staal, and Chad LaRose took over the series. The second line tandem accounted for all four goals, with the fourth coming on a 5 on 3 power play as the Devils imploded after Brendan Shanahan gave them their best scoring chance of the night. Staal, Whitney, and LaRose combined for three goals and six assists off the four goals. Carolina, the team with the fewest special teams play in the regular season (least penalized and least power play opportunities), were the recipients of 6 power play chances, with 4 of them coming in the third period. Through the first two periods, the Devils were limited to 15 shots compared to Carolina's 29. Of course, the Devils weren't about to sit down and take the beating, and some messages were sent near the end of the game as the hockey world prepares for what should be one of the biggest showdowns in recent playoff history.
A sudden burst of game sevens to be scheduled for Tuesday night. What are the odds San Jose and Calgary tuned into these games, as both teams are down in their series 2-3 and are facing an elimination game 6 Monday night. If Washington ends up winning game 7, is that the end of the playoffs for Jose Theodore? Or is Varlamov's leash a lot shorter than it seems, and he'll be yanked at the first sign of trouble? Going into game 7, New Jersey and Carolina is pretty much a coin flip match statistically. 4 games were decided by a goal, with game 1 and game 6 blowouts by New Jersey and Carolina respectively. Each team has a victory on the road and 2 at home. The only thing going for New Jersey is this: no team in this series has won 2 games in a row. If that pattern continues, New Jersey is primed up for a game 7 victory. Of course, it must be reiterated that that is the ONLY thing going for New Jersey heading into game 7. Everything else is dead even. I'm going as far as saying it will be the most exciting game this year in the playoffs (unless you're the fan of the Stanley Cup champion this year).
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
No comments:
Post a Comment