This is my attemp at liveblogging. By that I mean I'll be posting updates from my phone throughout the game if I remember.
First note - LSSU starts Inglis tonight in goal. If you remember my series preview, Inglis has been pretty disappointing in net this season. Hopefully this bodes well for the Falcons.
Update #1 - 12:29 left in the 1st. LSSU up 1-0 already on a bad rebound by Eno.
Update #2 - 1:37 left in the first. 1-1. Perkin with the equalizer after a gorgeous move to get by the defender at the blueline.
BG has definitely turned it on in the second half of this period.
Update #3 - 1:49 remaining in the 2nd. 3-1 LSSU on two quick goals. Eno dropped a pair of shots right on his glove. He's been pulled and Hammond has stepped in. Momentum is definitely in the Lakers' favor right now.
Update #4 - 11:42 remaining in the 3rd. 4-1 LSSU. Hammond got beat on a tough rebound. Wide open net.
BG just had over a minute of sustained pressure on Inglis on the PP and came away with nothing. At least a dozen chances, but no goals. Just one of those nights.
Update #5 - 7:12 left in the 3rd. 5-2 LSSU. BG scored on a trickler that found its way past Inglis. Tommy Dee, if I remember correctly.
LSSU answered almost immediately. The goal chant had barely finished.
Update #6 - Just over :20 remaining in the game. Huge collision in front of the LSSU net. Robert Shea bowls over Pat Inglis and a huge scuffle erupts. Lots of pushing, shoving, and punches thrown.
When it's all said and done, Shea is sent off the ice, and four Lakers make their way to the box. MacVoy is being escorted off the ice, but instead insists on going to the box. He immediately begins jawing at the BG players, leading one of the scorers to stand up and shout him down. He is then sent off, giving some interesting hand gestures to the Ice Arena faithful.
Two more BG players make the long skate to the sin bin, and we're up to eight in the box and two sent to the locker room.
Inglis is down for a few minutes, and the crowd is still stirred up due to the scrum. The final :20 tick off of the clock, and LSSU wins. Dillin Stonehouse smacks the boards in front of the student section and skates through the handshake line and off the ice to a chorus of boos and insults.
Tough loss, but an interesting game. Goaltending and defensive lapses were a major issue. Aside from the one sustained PP, BG wasn't able to accomplish much with the advantage. These issues are going to have to be addressed.
I'll have the scoring summary and an update on my fantasy picks as soon as I get the information.
Showing posts with label Lake Superior. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Lake Superior. Show all posts
Saturday, December 5, 2009
Wednesday, December 2, 2009
The Times, They Are A-Changing
Going into this series against Lake Superior, even casual observers of Falcon hockey can tell there's something different going on. They may not be able to put a finger on it, or spell it out completely, but there's a feel in the air that hasn't been present in some time.
To me, the only way to describe it is with one word: optimism.
This may seem a strange word to use to describe the situation of a 2-10-2 team who faced the very realistic possibility of the elimination of their program this off-season, but I stand by my point. Yes, the team faced some very scary, very dark moments in the long off-season months, but it is my feeling that the team has even more reason to feel optimistic and hopeful because of that situation.
Some outside the circle of Falcon hockey and its fans have asked me why I'm so excited about a two-win hockey team who lost most of the previous year's stars. I suppose at the root of it is the fact that where we are now, even at 2-10-2, is a heck of a lot better than where it looked like we were heading.
But beyond the feelings of, "We're just happy to be here," are some real reasons for hope.
Last week the Falcons took the #13/14 Notre Dame Fighting Irish to the wire in a pair of weekend contests, losing the first in the final two seconds and winning the second in a 1-0 shootout. While the series officially goes down as an overtime loss and a tie in the standings, it means a lot more to the Falcon hockey team and its community of supporters. Prior to the shootout victory, the Falcons had lost 12 straight to the Irish. That's not a blip on the radar. That's the kind of streak that cripples a fan-base. That's the kind of streak that stirs up talk of curses. So, while the Falcons didn't officially win either of the games against the Irish this year, the fact that they pulled off even the smallest of victories in the shootout is certainly cause for celebration.
Furthermore, watching the team on the ice, there is a clearly renewed sense of urgency, energy, determination, and will to win. In the later years of the Scott Paluch era, Falcon teams were often said to have "given up" on games that got away from them early. A 3-1 game in favor of the opponent could easily become 7-1 before all was said and done. This season, things seem to be different.
Take, for example, the second game of the series with the #9 Alaska Nanooks. In the first game of the series, the Falcons fought to a surprising 3-1 victory, their first of the season. Early in the second game, however, it became clear that a sweep wasn't going to come easy. The Nanooks jumped out to a 3-0 lead in the first period, and the feeling in the arena was that of dread. The fans had seen this movie before, and it didn't end well for the good guys. Instead of giving up, the Falcons fought back and went into the third period trailing 4-2. With only a few minutes remaining in the game, David Solway put home a goal that cut the Nanooks' lead to one. The arena was electric. The players were energized, and it looked for a moment like the icers might fight back and get the sweep. While the game ended in a 5-3 loss courtesy of an empty net goal, the fighting spirit shown by the Falcons served as even further evidence that change was in the air.
That change could be, and probably is, coming from a number of different sources, but it would be silly to go through this whole article without mentioning the most obvious possibility - Interim Head Coach Dennis Williams. It is apparent in his press conferences and his general demeanor that Coach Williams is a key part of the recovery and eventual resurgence of this program. While a player at BGSU, Coach Williams received the Howard Brown Coaches' Award in recognition of his professional attitude on and off the ice, and that professional attitude continues to this day.
Have the results fully materialized on the ice yet? No. This sort of turnaround takes time and patience. The team may continue to struggle in the standings for the rest of the season. They may end up surprising all of the critics and placing well in the CCHA tournament. Either way, a few things are clear: this is a team that wants to not just survive, but thrive, and they have many of the pieces in place to make that a reality.
Hopefully the next few pieces of the puzzle fall into place this weekend against the Lakers. Here's to the first Falcon sweep of the season.
To me, the only way to describe it is with one word: optimism.
This may seem a strange word to use to describe the situation of a 2-10-2 team who faced the very realistic possibility of the elimination of their program this off-season, but I stand by my point. Yes, the team faced some very scary, very dark moments in the long off-season months, but it is my feeling that the team has even more reason to feel optimistic and hopeful because of that situation.
Some outside the circle of Falcon hockey and its fans have asked me why I'm so excited about a two-win hockey team who lost most of the previous year's stars. I suppose at the root of it is the fact that where we are now, even at 2-10-2, is a heck of a lot better than where it looked like we were heading.
But beyond the feelings of, "We're just happy to be here," are some real reasons for hope.
Last week the Falcons took the #13/14 Notre Dame Fighting Irish to the wire in a pair of weekend contests, losing the first in the final two seconds and winning the second in a 1-0 shootout. While the series officially goes down as an overtime loss and a tie in the standings, it means a lot more to the Falcon hockey team and its community of supporters. Prior to the shootout victory, the Falcons had lost 12 straight to the Irish. That's not a blip on the radar. That's the kind of streak that cripples a fan-base. That's the kind of streak that stirs up talk of curses. So, while the Falcons didn't officially win either of the games against the Irish this year, the fact that they pulled off even the smallest of victories in the shootout is certainly cause for celebration.
Furthermore, watching the team on the ice, there is a clearly renewed sense of urgency, energy, determination, and will to win. In the later years of the Scott Paluch era, Falcon teams were often said to have "given up" on games that got away from them early. A 3-1 game in favor of the opponent could easily become 7-1 before all was said and done. This season, things seem to be different.
Take, for example, the second game of the series with the #9 Alaska Nanooks. In the first game of the series, the Falcons fought to a surprising 3-1 victory, their first of the season. Early in the second game, however, it became clear that a sweep wasn't going to come easy. The Nanooks jumped out to a 3-0 lead in the first period, and the feeling in the arena was that of dread. The fans had seen this movie before, and it didn't end well for the good guys. Instead of giving up, the Falcons fought back and went into the third period trailing 4-2. With only a few minutes remaining in the game, David Solway put home a goal that cut the Nanooks' lead to one. The arena was electric. The players were energized, and it looked for a moment like the icers might fight back and get the sweep. While the game ended in a 5-3 loss courtesy of an empty net goal, the fighting spirit shown by the Falcons served as even further evidence that change was in the air.
That change could be, and probably is, coming from a number of different sources, but it would be silly to go through this whole article without mentioning the most obvious possibility - Interim Head Coach Dennis Williams. It is apparent in his press conferences and his general demeanor that Coach Williams is a key part of the recovery and eventual resurgence of this program. While a player at BGSU, Coach Williams received the Howard Brown Coaches' Award in recognition of his professional attitude on and off the ice, and that professional attitude continues to this day.
Have the results fully materialized on the ice yet? No. This sort of turnaround takes time and patience. The team may continue to struggle in the standings for the rest of the season. They may end up surprising all of the critics and placing well in the CCHA tournament. Either way, a few things are clear: this is a team that wants to not just survive, but thrive, and they have many of the pieces in place to make that a reality.
Hopefully the next few pieces of the puzzle fall into place this weekend against the Lakers. Here's to the first Falcon sweep of the season.
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