Lightning Strike
This has been a great stretch if you're a fan of both the NBA and the NHL. A day after watching the two best teams in the NBA go at it, we were treated to the first meeting of the season between the two best teams in the NHL, the Lightning and my Leafs.
As a Leafs fan, I obviously didn't like the result. We lost 4-1 in a game that wasn't as lopsided as the score indicates. Also, this was our first loss in regulation after scoring first (we'd been 15-0-1).
But man, this was a cracking hockey game. Our previous game vs. 'Canes was, as hockey games go, kinda meh, even though we won 4-1. It almost didn't feel like a win.
This was the opposite. We lost by that same score but it didn't feel like we lost by three. And it was one of the most entertaining games I've seen all season. Too bad I only watched parts of the third period, but even though we lost, I plan to go find on-demand feed.
For the first 39 minutes, we were right in it, down only 2-1 and getting shots on net with abandon. Then the wheels fell off as the Bolts scored twice in the final 36 seconds of the second period to open up a 4-1 lead. We hit a few posts in the loss, but hey, that's all part of the game, right?
My thoughts.
Need for Speed
It may seem kind of obvious that you have to be able to skate fast to play in the NHL. But it wasn't always the case. I often marvel at how much the game has changed since the time I first started watching the NHL (1995-1996 season). It's way faster, with much better athletes on the ice. Especially compared to the late 1990s and early 2000s, it's become much more difficult to defend now, with the crackdown on holding and clutching, etc. You take a relatively harmless swipe at an opponent's stick and you get called for slashing.
Today, you've got to be able to skate with the best of 'em to be successful. It's absolutely no coincidence that the Leafs and the Lightning are two of the very best: these guys can flat out skate, even their bottom six forwards.
I was transfixed watching the opening 10 or so minutes of this game. There seemed to be a great deal of tension in the air. A lot of back and forth action, some turnovers on both ends, odd-man rushes, goalies making saves.
Then Kucherov set up Kapenen with a perfect cross-ice pass on the tape ;)
Vasilevskiy made 48 saves, including some of the "Did he just make that save???" variety. Like this one. Little you can do when you run into a hot goalie.
We peppered him with shots all game long. There was one power play when our top unit was in their zone for the entire two minutes. Man, it was fun to watch that sequence, even though we didn't end up scoring.
Kapanen with a Dozen
Not that anyone within the Leafs organization would read this, but I've been pushing hard for Kapanen to stay as Matthews' RW even after Nylander's return.
That goal was a beauty. And he hit the crossbar moments before that scoring play.
Kap could get to anywhere between 25 and 30 goals when it's all said and done. That line of Johnsson-Matthews-Kapanen buzzed all game. Why break something that ain't broken, right?
It's a happy problem to have for Babs. They say it takes 12 games for someone in Nylander's situation (no training camp, no preseason, thrown into fire after a quarter of the way into the regular season) to really get into the rhythm. That'd be 8 more games for Willie, and that will take us into the new year.
Here's what I'm hoping will happen. I hope Kapanen will continue to score at this rate and stay on that line, and Nylander will find his groove and give Naz some much-needed jolt as well. We have the depth at forwards. Always best to spread the wealth.
He certainly has skills and hands. But he began his NHL career mostly as a bottom-six grinder. He may not have the brute strength, but he can get into those battles in the corners and come out just fine. He can be Zach Hyman to Matthews' Tavares, plus the scoring touch.
We get the Panthers next in Florida. That team was supposed to be in the thick of the playoff battle this year, but injuries have killed them. Coming in on a four-game slide. This is the kind of game that we have to win.
As a Leafs fan, I obviously didn't like the result. We lost 4-1 in a game that wasn't as lopsided as the score indicates. Also, this was our first loss in regulation after scoring first (we'd been 15-0-1).
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| This one would look good on my laptop... |
But man, this was a cracking hockey game. Our previous game vs. 'Canes was, as hockey games go, kinda meh, even though we won 4-1. It almost didn't feel like a win.
This was the opposite. We lost by that same score but it didn't feel like we lost by three. And it was one of the most entertaining games I've seen all season. Too bad I only watched parts of the third period, but even though we lost, I plan to go find on-demand feed.
For the first 39 minutes, we were right in it, down only 2-1 and getting shots on net with abandon. Then the wheels fell off as the Bolts scored twice in the final 36 seconds of the second period to open up a 4-1 lead. We hit a few posts in the loss, but hey, that's all part of the game, right?
My thoughts.
Need for Speed
It may seem kind of obvious that you have to be able to skate fast to play in the NHL. But it wasn't always the case. I often marvel at how much the game has changed since the time I first started watching the NHL (1995-1996 season). It's way faster, with much better athletes on the ice. Especially compared to the late 1990s and early 2000s, it's become much more difficult to defend now, with the crackdown on holding and clutching, etc. You take a relatively harmless swipe at an opponent's stick and you get called for slashing.
Today, you've got to be able to skate with the best of 'em to be successful. It's absolutely no coincidence that the Leafs and the Lightning are two of the very best: these guys can flat out skate, even their bottom six forwards.
I was transfixed watching the opening 10 or so minutes of this game. There seemed to be a great deal of tension in the air. A lot of back and forth action, some turnovers on both ends, odd-man rushes, goalies making saves.
Then Kucherov set up Kapenen with a perfect cross-ice pass on the tape ;)
But that was the only puck we put past Vasilevskiy, who was playing in his first game back from broken foot that kept him out of the previous 14 games. Well, maybe we put a couple past him, but not the goal line.Steals, slows, snipes.@kasperikapanen1 opens the scoring in style. #LeafsForever pic.twitter.com/ZehObeoxJS— Toronto Maple Leafs (@MapleLeafs) December 14, 2018
Vasilevskiy made 48 saves, including some of the "Did he just make that save???" variety. Like this one. Little you can do when you run into a hot goalie.
We peppered him with shots all game long. There was one power play when our top unit was in their zone for the entire two minutes. Man, it was fun to watch that sequence, even though we didn't end up scoring.
Kapanen with a Dozen
Not that anyone within the Leafs organization would read this, but I've been pushing hard for Kapanen to stay as Matthews' RW even after Nylander's return.
That goal was a beauty. And he hit the crossbar moments before that scoring play.
Kap could get to anywhere between 25 and 30 goals when it's all said and done. That line of Johnsson-Matthews-Kapanen buzzed all game. Why break something that ain't broken, right?
It's a happy problem to have for Babs. They say it takes 12 games for someone in Nylander's situation (no training camp, no preseason, thrown into fire after a quarter of the way into the regular season) to really get into the rhythm. That'd be 8 more games for Willie, and that will take us into the new year.
Here's what I'm hoping will happen. I hope Kapanen will continue to score at this rate and stay on that line, and Nylander will find his groove and give Naz some much-needed jolt as well. We have the depth at forwards. Always best to spread the wealth.
He certainly has skills and hands. But he began his NHL career mostly as a bottom-six grinder. He may not have the brute strength, but he can get into those battles in the corners and come out just fine. He can be Zach Hyman to Matthews' Tavares, plus the scoring touch.
We get the Panthers next in Florida. That team was supposed to be in the thick of the playoff battle this year, but injuries have killed them. Coming in on a four-game slide. This is the kind of game that we have to win.
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