It might have surprised some people, but not this cat. The Sharks and Flames fought a close battle last night at the Tank, closer than the shot clock might indicate. In fact, while Kiprusoff turned aside 37 shots in the Flames' 3-2 victory in Game 1 of the opening round, the scoring opportunities were much closer.
The Sharks were pretty good, particularly Patrick Marleau, though they were sporadic in their attack. The Flames also played an excellent road game, keeping the normally ballistic San Jose crowd out of the match from the get-go.
A couple of notes:
1) The weaknesses of Brian Campbell were evident last night. For one, the Flames defenders were not only watching for his Savardian Spin-o-Rama, they were waiting for it. He tried it a couple of times and was met head-on. Seems as if the ice got a lot smaller one when the regular season becomes a memory. For another, he was utterly incapable of winning a one-on-one battle with Iginla, as evidenced by what turned out to be the game-winning goal. He's a great player, he can handle the puck and he is going to get his share of points, but it will take more than Campbell's slick moves to get the Sharks a championship, let alone out of the first round.
2) Kipper's better than Nabokov. There is no question. I like Nabokov, he's a great goaltender, and he will rightly take home the Vezina. He can keep his team in the game and has a stable, cool head on his shoulders. However, I cannot remember an incidence where he had to win a game on his own. Of course, this might have more to do with the quality of teammates in front of him, but Kipper wins games almost all by himself on a regular basis. There are up to six games to go, but this difference might be all the difference needed to settle this series.
3) The Flames won this game more than the Sharks lost it. I thought the Teal played solid and tough and had plenty of chances. Their powerplay looked lethal, even if they didn't get to capitalize. The Flames, on the other hand, still made a few mistakes and had to be bailed out by their goaltender. One might see this and suggest that the Sharks are the better team; I see this as the Flames won the game and still have room for improvement.
4) It was good to get Game 1 out of the way, but before this series started, I thought Game 2 was even more important. If the Flames had lost, then they would have needed to get back in the series; but if they'd won Game 1, the Sharks are almost guaranteed to take at least one game back in the Saddledome. San Jose has the best road record in the league and will be certainly looking to shut the crowd down like Calgary did last night. If the Flames want to win this series, I do believe that winning Game 2 is a must.
Other notes:
- The Sens still suck, but the Pens were sloppy with their sticks and started playing Ottawa's chippy game. If they want to win in 4 games, they will have to smarten up. Keep in mind, next round will be considerably more difficult for that young team.
- Marty Brodeur is mortal after all. Look for him to rebound (with few rebounds) in Game 2.
- Congrats on Joe Sakic on his extending his OT goal-scoring record to 8. I've always liked him, and I've never liked Minnesota. So I'm happy.
