Flat: I know that first and foremost Rask wants to win the cup but, I really hope he has an epic run of games so once and for all he can cement his legacy as a elite goalie instead of an also ran behind Thomas. Rask has never fully been embraced by Boston because he is not exciting to watch ( a la Thomas) and has had lapses which make it hard to be confident he'll be there for you. The other 5 guys on the ice play better when they know the guy with all the extra equipment can bail them out of an oh shoot moment. You understand.

If you missed the game last night, you missed some good old fashion all out hockey like this:
<iframe width="733" height="586" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/ef_UVrCOgQM" frameborder="0" allow="accelerometer; autoplay; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture" allowfullscreen></iframe>

I was surprised that the refs let that go, pleasantly so. Somehow those two kept the rest of their play within bounds. The rough and tumble at the top of the crease (hmm who was going on about that?) was very close to sin bin worthy, but as a goalie it warmed my heart to see the paint being protected like that. Krugs Scud missile crush on Thomas was perfect.

In other news...

https://www.msn.com/en-us/sports/nhl/gary-bettman-unhappy-over-latest-officiating-controversy-but-will-nhl-expand-replay/ar-AAC0i6i?ocid=spartandhp

The B's shook off the rust and the push from STL in period one and then they were just deeper and better. Too many penalties for STL.

The tell tail was the 38-20 SOG. You wont beat Rask for more than 2 goals with 20 SOG. It will take more than 2 GPG to win games. STL needs to find away to create more offense and stay out of the box if this is going to be a series.

Coach Craig you better come up with something quickly.

^^^ I thought the same thing in game 1 versus the Sharks and look what happened.

Its only game one but STL just needs to figure out a way to get to Rask, 20 shots is not cutting it. Anything can happen.

I am kinda in the same court as Rod & Trader with respect to the Blues 'less than stellar' first game performances.
To me, SOG can be misleading as hit goalposts (we all know to be part of a goaltender's equipment),
blocked shots, 'near' misses & such are not included, therefore the stat is not necessarily representative
of the true nature of the contest.
I believe a metric for 'scoring chances' may have some validity - just what we all need - another stat.

Da Broons flat-out beat the Blues & only Binnington's play kept the score respectable.
St. Loo has to stay out of the box if they hope to make this a series.

Cheers
JB

That used to be business as usual every game. I miss those days.

And then they have have to hope that Rask is not playing at the same level as the rest of the playoffs.
They really have to stay out of the sin bin.

So predictions for Game 2:
-Rask will best tested a lot more.
-Someone will want to dance with Krug for the hit on Thomas but if he's smart he'll just smile and draw penalties.
-If the Blues get behind, we'll see even more hitting and a few 5 minute rest periods in the sin bin for fighting.
-Running changes in lines for the Blues (trying to mitigate not having last change), business as usual for the Bruins unless they start losing control of the game.
-And, (the easiest one of all) there will be a missed call by the refs but hopefully it will not impact the game.

Along the lines of missed calls, I was surprised that Chara's high stick got missed and even more surprised that Perron didn't get 2 minutes for ripping Krugs helmet off.

Berube & Co. better come up with a better plan to counteract Da Broons transition game or it's over pretty quickly.

Cheers
JB

how about Chara's blatant slash on the PP that broke the Blues stick? That was a gift to Boston otherwise thats a long 5 on 3.....

Thank you for that whine. I already agreed in post #431 (OK so I called it a high stick)

I wasn't whining, you said high stick, it was not a high stick.

Therefore I had no clue what you were talking about.

It was Chara. Waist height is a high stick. It was both.

Fair enough. That's why I went and edited my post and admit it was not totally accurate.

So how do you feel about Perron mauling Krug in front of the net?

1990: good point. Thanks for being the peacemaker.

So, I have to admit Stanley Cup finals are awesome but having the Bruins in it makes me feel like a kid at Christmas. Lets hope I get what I Santa to bring me. :D

http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1559161547.jpg

I see Thomas isn't playing tonight.
Anyone want to predict what's coming tonight?

That was a targeted hit ,but not to the head, not full stride into the body, clean and hard.

If it was me coaching, I'd have my boys bring the boom right out of the gate. Take it to the body, finish your checks, fore check like rabid dogs and pepper Rask. Yeah you have to be careful with the hits but the Blues need to escalate from the first drop. Any body not puking before the end of the match didn't skate hard enough.

I couldn’t believe it wasn’t a call in front of the net either, but then I thought it was stupid of him to target Thompson afterwards.

My guess is we see a different Blues team tonight but if a Boston plays their game they will win at home.