Make it five in a row, the last three at the Sommet Center, as the Preds fall to the Colorado Avalanche 2-1. The Avs won the season series 3 games to 1, and left the 13,598 fans at the game stunned.
Felder’s FRUSTRATED Five:
1. Top Line Flat Lines - That was a really bad game for the top line of Erat, Arnott, and Fiddler. All of them ended the night -2. Arnott had ZERO shots on goal, Erat had 1, and Fiddler led the way with 2. Wow. That is really not what you want to see from that line. That line also combined for 5 of the Preds 24 missed shots. More on the missed shots in a moment. If Barry Trotz doesn't break up that line, or at least sit Martin Erat, then we are watching two different games.
2. More Missed Shots Than the Ones On Net - 23 shots on goal, 24 missed shots. There will be a quote from Predators Head Coach Barry Trotz on this down in that section. If, you take away the defensemen's missed shots, then you have 13 missed shots by the forwards. That's ugly hockey my friends.
3. Better Shot Selection Is Needed NOW - On top of the missed shots, you have the Colorado Avalanche blocking 23 shots. Well, a few of those you could definitely credit to their bravery, but I saw really bad shot selection from quite a few Preds tonight. All too often they will fire the puck right into an opponent's skate or stick. Martin Erat is guilty of this quite often. If the Preds would just fire pucks off maybe a second sooner, instead of always looking where to pass, then that blocked shot total should go down. I do give credit to the Avs for giving up the body that often, but the Preds did make it a bit easier than normal.
4. Time For Martin Erat to Sit - Send a message because the last two games have been real bad for Marty. Tonight, Barry Trotz even called him out on both goals against. I'm sure you'll see that quote in the local paper. The Calgary game was really bad, despite the assist, and tonight's game he managed just 1 shot on goal, while having 2 blocked and 2 miss the net altogether. He finished the night with a -2, and also added 2 takeaways and 2 giveaways. For me, I'd rather see a defensively responsible Joel Ward play right now. It may be time to send Marty a message and let him sit out Thursday's game.
5. That Doomed Feeling - No, I'm not talking about the season. I'm talking about the fact that going into the 3rd period down a goal I had no hope for a comeback. I knew their shots on goal in the 3rd period have been abysmal the last few games, and I couldn't convince myself that they could pot two goals. It's no fun to have that doomed feeling of a loss before the game is even 50 minutes into the books. The problem is they didn't prove me wrong. Just 5 shots on goal in the 2nd period, and then a "roaring" comeback attempt with a total of 6 shots on goal in the 3rd period. That just stinks no matter how you slice it. Let's examine all of the last five games that they have lost. Tonight, down 2-1 and they get 6 shots on goal. Last Saturday against Calgary, up 2-1, and they have 5 shots on goal. Last Thursday vs Vancouver, tied at 1, and they actually did manage 10 shots on goal. Last Monday at Colorado, down 4-1 headed into the 3rd and they had 5 shots on goal. Finally, last Sunday at Edmonton, down 5-2, and they had 8 shots on goal. I don't know how to explain the lack of shots, but that few on net does not lead to comebacks.
Other Notes:
* Tonight’s scratches were Joel Ward and Ville Koistinen.
* 1ST PERIOD
* 16:31 to go and we have are first stoppage. That was a solid start to the game with lots of effort and chances for the Preds. Very encouraging sign for the remainder of the game. Also, for the first time in quite a few games I saw Dan Hamhuis deliver a fairly big hit along the boards. Maybe he is over the funk/injury.
* GOAL for NASHVILLE - 12:30 to go. WELCOME BACK RYAN JONES! A goal off a rebound from J.P. Dumont's shot. THAT is why he must be on a 2nd line and deserves to be in the NHL. Jones crashed the back side of Andrew Raycroft and buried the rebound with ease. Boy, he made me look good since I've been calling for his return to the NHL. Jones from Dumont and Ryan Suter. Preds lead 1-0.
* GOAL for COLORADO - 5:35 remains. Milan Hejduk skates with speed down the wing, draws Ryan Suter towards him, and then slips the puck to Wojtek Wolski in the slot. Wolski fires off a quick one-time wrister that blisters by Rinne high glove side. Rinne did not look very prepared for that one-timer shot, which was just the 3rd of the period for Colorado at that point. Wolski from Hejduk and Ryan Smyth. Game is all even at 1.
* END OF THE 1ST PERIOD – NSH: 1 COL: 1. Positives - Ryan Jones looks like a brilliant call up at the moment. Great energy and fight from the Preds. 12 shots on goal that period. An amazing 83% on faceoff wins that period. Negatives - I thought Pekka should have had that one, but that may be me being picky. Wish they had at least collected one more goal with that many scoring chances.
* 2ND PERIOD
* 12:34 to go and the Preds almost score on a very flukey goal. J.P. Dumont let off a wrister from the top of the faceoff circle to Raycroft's left. The shot was really intended as a dump in but the puck deflected up, then fell down on the crossbar before bouncing away from the Avs net. Very close play there that would have been a crazy goal.
* 10:23 to go and Philippe Dupuis goes to the box for tripping. Initially I thought he would be called for intent to injure since he took out Shea Weber's leg in what looked like a shot at his knee. Weber was very upset with the play, and although he went after the wrong player, he got away with a blatant shove to the ice of Darcy Tucker. The Colorado bench was livid since Weber received no penalty, and I can understand why. The play was really dangerous though and Weber was rightfully upset with a play that, although most likely unintentional, was a dirty shot at his knee.
* GOAL for COLORADO - 4:13 to go. A botched play ends up with a back door goal. Does that sound at all familiar this season? Ryan Suter tried to pinch in on Ruslan Salei carrying the puck along the boards in the neutral zone, however Salei got the puck to Hejduk with speed entering the zone. Greg Zanon and Vern Fiddler were back, but the cross ice feed from Hejduk hit Vern's stick and found it's way to Wojtek Wolski's tape for an easy back door score. Wolski roofed the shot ton ensure his 2nd goal of the night. Wolski from Hejduk and Salei. Avs lead 2-1.
* 1:18 to go in the period and J.P. Dumont misses a breakaway chance wide right of the net. Upon looking at the replay it was obvious that Dumont should have gone 5-hole on that one. Dumont was really frustrated and went to the bench where he slammed his stick on the inside of the bench until it snapped. Not sure I've ever seen that kind of emotion from J.P. but I like it.
* END OF THE 2ND PERIOD – NSH: 1 COL: 1. Positives - The Preds only allowed 7 shots on goal for a 2nd consecutive period. Negatives - Only 5 shots on goal for the Preds that period. A bad night for Ryan Suter as he is now -2. 19 missed shots that period and 17 blocked by Colorado.
* 3RD PERIOD
* 6:50 to go in the period and Kevin Klein loses an edge and goes sliding into the boards with force. Klein went to the locker room once he got to the bench with an injury. He really slammed into the lower half of the boards. He did return to the game.
* 2:40 to go and Rinne makes a real nice save on Ryan Smyth. That could have been game set and match were it not for Pekka.
* 1:36 to go and Jason Arnott gets called for holding. Arny was pretty upset, banging his stick against the boards looking for an explanation from the ref, and he even covered the in box camera. I honestly can't say this was a weak call. From the replay, I can see why the ref had to blow it down. This one, is likely in the books now.
* 38 seconds to go and Pekka Rinne makes a diving stop in the slot as he bee lined back from going to the bench. Save of the night right there.
* FINAL SCORE – NSH - 1 COL - 2.
My Three Stars:
1. Wojtek Wolski - 2 goals, a +2 rating, 6 shots on goal, 2 hit, 2 takeaways, and 1 blocked shot.
2. Milan Hejduk - 2 primary assists, +2 rating, 1 shot on goal, 1 takeaway, and 1 blocked shot.
3. Ryan Jones - 1 goal, +1 rating, and 1 shot on goal.
Goalie Grade:B+ – The starting goaltender tonight was Pekka Rinne. The first goal against Pekka was a 50/50 in my mind. You would like to see him make that save, but at the same time that was a beautiful one-timer shot by Wolski. That one could go either way, but for me I think he could make that stop. The second goal against was not Pekka's fault at all. Back door tally that no goalie has a chance on.
Ref Review:B- – The crew tonight was Don Koharski, Wes McCauley, Shane Heyer, and Mark Shewchyk. The Preds got away with a couple, but it came back to them in the 3rd period with their only 2 penalties. Weber really got away with one. So, the crew did not do a perfect job, but a fairly good one nonetheless.
Quotes:
Brandon Felder - "How would you describe your time down in Milwaukee. You've obviously had success down there."
Ryan Jones - "Well it's a learning experience. It's my first year out of college and the pro game is a little bit different so you go down there and get to learn things at a slower speed. The wall play and stuff is crucial down there but the game is not as fast."
Felder - "Going into tonight was there any nerves or was there more of comfort feeling since you've been up here before?"
Jones - "It's more comfortable and I'm more confident having been here before, knowing that my play controls whether or not I'll be here in the future. So, I just go out and play my hardest."
*
Felder - "Lately the team's shots on goal in the 3rd period have been down. Is that a factor of the other team's clamping down or maybe you guys looking for the pretty pass to set up that goal? What do you think it is?"
J.P. Dumont - "There is a lot of working down low and grinding. We missed the net a lot but sometimes when you rush the net and crash the net it creates a lot of chaos but the puck doesn't get there. We have to make sure we find ways to get the puck to the net and then crash the net."
*
Felder - "24 missed shots tonight. Can that be attributed to squeezing the stick or something else?"
Barry Trotz - "I don't know what I can attribute it to. It just happens. If I had that answer I'd probably bottle it but I don't have that answer. One of the things that all teams do is there is more blocking of shots. We don't want our defense to get shots blocked and then go the other way with a turnover. You can miss the net on purpose sometimes. You don't want a turnover right at your blueline, they get a breakaway, score, and change the momentum. So sometimes it's deliberate because our D is a little bit nervous that they don't want their shot blocked, but at the same time those pucks that come off the back board are opportunities that you can filter back in the crease. We are not doing that enough because obviously we are not scoring enough. We hit two posts and a crossbar tonight. As I say, if you do the right things long enough and over and over you will get paid ten fold. If you start cheating and you start getting away from things that make you a good player and team then they go the other way in a hurry and for a long time. This has been a real tough stretch and unfortunately this is where we need to make up some ground. There is still 86 points out there and we're in desperation time now."
Felder - "Your decision to sit Joel Ward."
Trotz - "I just think his game has fallen off. He's changed his game a little bit and I need desperation from Joel Ward. I need desperation from a lot of guys. Everybody from our top guys that are struggling to score consistently, but we also have guys that are maybe lesser role guys that aren't contributing. We always want everyone contributing and contributing offensively. Everybody's got to find a way to chip in."
Final Thoughts:
I really don't know what to tell you. Last game I found some positives in the loss. This game, the only positive I saw was that Ryan Jones made me and all the other people begging for a call up from Milwaukee look smart by scoring a goal. A five game home stretch in which the Preds really needed 6 or 7 points, and now the most they can hope for is 4. Things won't get any easier this week either.
The Predators next game will be against the Pittsburgh Penguins. A rare game vs the Crosby and Malking lead Pens should be quite fun to watch. Pittsburgh broke out of a scoring funk, and on the power play too, vs Atlanta tonight. That means things don't look as good as they were this morning for the visit from Pittsburgh. Game time is 7 pm CST and this game will be shown on local TV via FS TN.
Till Thursday, take care everyone.
Don’t forget to tune into the Nashville Hockeybuzz Radio show, Monday nights from 6 to 7 pm on WNSR 560 A.M. with Paul McCann and myself discussing all things Preds! Listen in at the WNSR Website for the best new Preds radio show around! The podcasting for the Nashville Hockeybuzz Radio show can be found at the following: Nashville Hockeybuzz Radio Podcast. Also, you may find the new Hockeybuzz Radio website enjoyable as well. It can be found at Hockeybuzzradio.com. Enjoy!
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