Due to the certain vortexes in the space-time continuum, whereby a good friend scored tickets for last night's game at the Saddledome, coupled with his pregnant wife feeling under the weather, in addition to my own being available at short notice, I was able to be in attendance at the greatest second season showing in Cowtown since the Flames knocked off Detroit in Game 6 of the second round of their 2004 run.
The performance I witnessed included an outstanding, character-driven comeback from a 3-0 deficit from less than 4 minutes into the game into a thrilling 4-3 victory, putting Calgary ahead of San Jose 2-1 in this opening round series. My larynx is swollen, my body tired, but I wouldn't trade that experience for almost anything.
Except, perhaps, my marriage.
And, I suppose, the birth of my future children.
A few notes:
- Has there even been a more brutal yet clean hit in the playoffs since Brian Campbell coined the term "to be umbergered" in that Buffalo-Philadelphia tilt a few years back? Patrick Marleau has been terrific so far, and he's tough as they come. But after getting plastered by Phaneuf and then completely demolished by Sarich, the man was stepping a lot more lightly for the rest of the game and, perhaps, for the rest of the series.
- Even superstars have a rough night, and kudos to Mike Keenan for getting the team composed after their dreadful start. He was right to pull Kiprusoff, and by showing confidence in his entire team.
- The most impressive late-season acquisition in this series (so far) is not Campbell coming to California, but Curtis Joseph. He's old, he handles the puck like an off-colour joke at a church social, but he's got experience and leadership enough to calm the team in front of him. I don't think he deserved the first star last night (Sarich should have gotten it for his wrecking job on Marleau), and he didn't have to make any Hollywood moves in the crease; still, he's making Darryl Sutter look like a genius again.
- While I don't necessarily disagree with Matt at Battle of Alberta that Thornton is not a "gutless, soft wuss", though I do disagree with him that there are qualities which prevent him from being a big-time player. It has to do with style and flair: Thornton is smooth, quiet and dangerous; yet big games call for someone who don't merely wrack up points, but do it in an inspiring fashion. A team can be lifted by a monster hit (like last night), an unbelievable save, a big fight, or a spectacular scoring rush. Think Ovechkin, Iginla, Phaneuf, Crosby, Kovalev, Pronger or even Marleau. They are exciting players with a penchant for the dramatic. Thorton has never really grasped this, and until he does, he will continue to suffer the slings and arrows of outrageous misfortune.
- As I noted earlier, Nabokov doesn't win games for his team, and last night was the obvious example. He was terrific in goal, but he had a 3-0 lead for the entire game and lost it in the end. He team failed in front of him, of course, and there were a few lucky bounces, but the greatest goaltenders find a way to hang on when it matters most, and Nabokov ultimately was responsible.
- Every line fielded by the Flames outplayed every line of the Sharks for the final 55 minutes. Case in point: with the game tied in the third period, Keenan had Eric Goddard and the 4th unit going against Thornton & co. Why? Because they were doing their job, clogging up the middle, disrupting lead passes, and supporting Regehr, Sarich and Joseph in their own zone effectively. When a team is firing on all cylinders, it shows the power of good coaching over any individual player, no matter how talented.
