Huh???: ESPN Chicago
Motiv8ed: CSN
Oh, great: PD
Good theory but see link 1: MST
Meanwhile in California: PHT
Stupid is as…: TSN
I had a bit of a discussion on this on Twitter on Monday, as I was watching yet more slobbering over Jonathan Quick and I was drinking. My best Twitter debates tend to come when I’m at the bar and I have time to kill. I’m sure I’m not alone in that.
Anyway, the narrative once again is that Jonathan Quick is dragging the Kings kicking and screaming through the playoffs. And I suppose that blue line beneath Drew Doughty does need some bailing out from time to time. But it got me to thinking:
59 games – 35-24, 8 shutouts, .928 SV%, 2.12 GAA
46 games – 27-18 3 shutouts, .925 SV%, 2.03 GAA
The top is Quick’s career playoff numbers. The bottom is Crawford’s. As you can see, other than the shutouts they’re almost identical. Ah, but I’m sure people will point to the Conn Smythe that Quick got and Crow doesn’t have. Ok then.
Quick’s 2012 run – 16-4 .946 SV%, 1.41 GAA
Crawford’s 2013 run – 16-7 .932 SV%, 1.84 GAA
Obviously, Quick’s run to the Cup was a little better, but not by all that much. And in 2012, Quick’s last three opponents didn’t finish in the top half in the league in scoring (and Vancouver was without Daniel Sedin courtesy Duncan Keith and Ryan Kesler was being held together by duct tape and hope), whereas last year’s Kings and Bruins both finished in the top half in scoring. We could easily make the argument that Crow had a tougher path to the Cup than Quick did.
I had a bit of a discussion on this on Twitter on Monday, as I was watching yet more slobbering over Jonathan Quick and I was drinking. My best Twitter debates tend to come when I’m at the bar and I have time to kill. I’m sure I’m not alone in that.
Anyway, the narrative once again is that Jonathan Quick is dragging the Kings kicking and screaming through the playoffs. And I suppose that blue line beneath Drew Doughty does need some bailing out from time to time. But it got me to thinking:
59 games – 35-24, 8 shutouts, .928 SV%, 2.12 GAA
46 games – 27-18 3 shutouts, .925 SV%, 2.03 GAA
The top is Quick’s career playoff numbers. The bottom is Crawford’s. As you can see, other than the shutouts they’re almost identical. Ah, but I’m sure people will point to the Conn Smythe that Quick got and Crow doesn’t have. Ok then.
Quick’s 2012 run – 16-4 .946 SV%, 1.41 GAA
Crawford’s 2013 run – 16-7 .932 SV%, 1.84 GAA
Obviously, Quick’s run to the Cup was a little better, but not by all that much. And in 2012, Quick’s last three opponents didn’t finish in the top half in the league in scoring (and Vancouver was without Daniel Sedin courtesy Duncan Keith and Ryan Kesler was being held together by duct tape and hope), whereas last year’s Kings and Bruins both finished in the top half in scoring. We could easily make the argument that Crow had a tougher path to the Cup than Quick did.
With today being the second of two days off after a disheartening 4-0 shutout at the hands of a goalie who had a previously embarrassing save percentage in the series, it’s natural that things have taken a sober and somber tone even in spite of a 2-1 series lead. And no one does somber, and in an uplifting fashion, than the bearded Mark Oliver Everett, mastermind of the Eels.
Pitt Rolls: TSN
The “reformed one” returns: MST
Swedish Silence: CSN AP
Still confident: Chicago Daily Tribune
Iron Mike happy behind the once Iron Curtain: CBC
Now that we’re a little separated from last night, I want to try and be as even-handed about Q’s decisions (in this series and in the past) as I can be. It won’t be easy, but if we all work together I think we can get through it.
While Q scratched Nick Leddy for Sheldon Brookbank last night, it didn’t end up working out as a straight swap. As you’ll see from last night’s Extra Skater, Brookbank hardly played with Leddy’s usual partner in Rozsival at all. Brookbank took most of his shifts with Duncan Keith, and like they were in the St. Louis series they were highly effective, at least in terms of possession. Brookbank and Keith were both over 70% in Corsi-percentage, a full 18% above the team-rate for the game. Brookbank didn’t see the highest level of competition either when on the ice, as he mostly saw Brodziak and Niederreiter but there wasn’t a specific matchup either coach was chasing.
Rozsival spent most of his night skating with Johnny Oduya, and they weren’t so lucky. While Rozsvial was above water in overall Corsi, he was below the team-rate. Meanwhile Oduya was completely buried. As far as forwards these two saw it was basically spread out all over the map, as Q couldn’t chase matchups and Yeo didn’t seem too interested when they were on the ice.
Now that we’re a little separated from last night, I want to try and be as even-handed about Q’s decisions (in this series and in the past) as I can be. It won’t be easy, but if we all work together I think we can get through it.
While Q scratched Nick Leddy for Sheldon Brookbank last night, it didn’t end up working out as a straight swap. As you’ll see from last night’s Extra Skater, Brookbank hardly played with Leddy’s usual partner in Rozsival at all. Brookbank took most of his shifts with Duncan Keith, and like they were in the St. Louis series they were highly effective, at least in terms of possession. Brookbank and Keith were both over 70% in Corsi-percentage, a full 18% above the team-rate for the game. Brookbank didn’t see the highest level of competition either when on the ice, as he mostly saw Brodziak and Niederreiter but there wasn’t a specific matchup either coach was chasing.
Rozsival spent most of his night skating with Johnny Oduya, and they weren’t so lucky. While Rozsvial was above water in overall Corsi, he was below the team-rate. Meanwhile Oduya was completely buried. As far as forwards these two saw it was basically spread out all over the map, as Q couldn’t chase matchups and Yeo didn’t seem too interested when they were on the ice.
Born and raised on Chicago’s southside, Common has long been a fixture in the hip-hop world. Before Common, there wasn’t really much attention paid to Chicago as a city with it’s own identity in the scene. Common began to form an identity with his album Resurrection released in 1994. This album was produced by his longtime friend No I.D. who was also crucial to bringing Chicago to the world as a mentor for both Common and Kanye West.
Common stayed away as much as he could from the trend of 90’s hip-hop trending more towards gangsta rap and used his music to focus on doing what he could to better the world around him. That doesn’t mean he shied away feuds though. He did have a brief battle with California group Westside Connection before both sides sat down with Louis Farrakhan to settle their dispute (which is a very 90’s hiphop kind of thing to do, isn’t it?).
Nowadays, like so many other 90’s hip-hop stars, Common is probably best known as an actor. He still makes time to use his fame to promote his brand of political activism. He was a huge supporter of Obama during both presidential campaigns, a supporter of PETA (ugh) and continues to work to prevent and treat HIV/AIDS. He’s done all of this while almost always rocking a really solid beard too.
4-0: Blackhawks
Crow doesn’t blow: CSN
You always want to be slower and less talented: ESPN Chicago
zzzz zzzz zzzz: PHT
Habs win: SI
Lavi to Smashville: Sportsnet
Well glad that’s settled: PD
The Hawks got shut out tonight by Ilya Bryzgalov. Let’s let that sink in for a minute. And once it soaks in… um, can you bathe from the inside out? I guess we’ll all have to turn ourselves inside out and soap up that way.
Once again, the Hawks decided that a Game 3 wasn’t all that important. But honestly, I didn’t have too much of a problem with the first 40 minutes. In some ways it felt like a Floyd Mayweather fight. Work through the first few rounds, time your opponent’s punches, survive a couple hooks, and then slowly take away everything they do and move away in the later rounds when they’ve run out of ideas and tire.
The Hawks forgot the last part, though they did the first part ok. And they forgot the second part because of a couple lazy/non-aware plays.
The first goal sprung from a lazy and ill-advised shot from Michal Rozsival. Rozie got the puck on the point with no Hawks between him and the goal and three Wild players there. Both Kruger and Saad were waiting below the goal-line for the puck to be cycled again. Instead, he flipped a wrister so limp it might as well have been my dead grandfather’s member that was easily cut out.
This started a rush the other way, which in truth the Hawks should have had covered. But Kane lost Haula for just enough time (not sure it would have mattered as Haula is a much faster skater than Kane but considering Kane’s head start…) to bat home a saucer pass from Justin Fontaine.
The second resulted from more incompetent work after a center ice faceoff. I swear, the Hawks committed 87 icings in the St. Louis series right after center-ice faceoffs, and tonight they went the other way. Kruger lost Granlund in the middle, Seabrook was faked into a swim right along with Crawford. And that’s basically game.
Let’s get to the points:
