A few things that struck me about that game:
- Gomez. I have been patient with him all year long, mainly because last year he also had a relatively mediocre regular season but then in the playoffs he really brought it, so I was hoping for the same thing this year. No such luck. What a major liability this guy has been, taking away ice time from some guys like...
- Desharnais. What a revelation! Smart, heads-up skater and very very strong on the puck for a little guy, outmuscled bigger B's a few times to generate scoring chances. Love this kid.
- Eller. Huge play on that Halpern goal to tie up the puck and eventually cause the turnover that led to his pass to Halpern to tie it. And on a rush shortly thereafter, brought the puck in and snapped a nice little wrister that Timmy barely blockered aside, very close to a goal to take the lead. Once this guy gets some confidence, he'll be a force offensively, given his size and skill. And as the Versus guys were mentioning, getting beat regularly by Bergeron in the faceoff circle could end up being great for him in the long run, great training for a few years down the line when he's clearly the no 2 centerman taking big faceoffs from time to time.
- Subban being goaded into fighting by Seidenberg. All the Subban haters on here, do you really think that Subban wants to spend 5 minutes in the bin during a key playoff game during which he ultimately played 40 minutes? I look at it this way, if Markov were playing and Seidenberg challenged him to a fight, would anyone consider Markov a wuss because he told him to go fly a kite? People will say the difference is that Subban chirps, big freakin deal, he's an A-1 Dman and should restrict his fighting to once in a while in the regular season when it makes sense.
- Price, man did he look good, nice bounce back game.
- Thomas, played great, but man was he lucky. That blind skate save by Chara off Cammalleri in OT? Ridiculous bad luck for the Habs and might spell the difference in the series.
The joint's going to be rocking on Tuesday night, let's hope the Habs get pumped up and come out like gangbusters. Either way though, no matter how this series goes, there is clearly a reason to be optimistic for the future with a very young core of Price, Subban, Plekanec, Cammy, Eller, Pacioretty, Desharnais going forward with vets like Gionta to provide stability and leadership/mentorship. The key question is how to get rid of Gomez? After this year's performance, I think the Habs are within their rights to "Redden" him, and like Redden, I don't think the hit (i.e., the negative repercussions of burying a player in the minors, among UFAs) will be all that bad.