FIVE QUICK THOUGHTS
-Certainly didn’t take long for these two teams to find that playoff level intensity, did it? After a quiet opening 20 minutes, things really heated up in the second period and it was almost like the Senators and the Canadiens picked up where they left off a couple seasons ago. You always hear players and coaches talk about it but the game really does reach another level come playoff time. There are a lot of young players on this Senators team that are getting their first real playoff experience this season and at times during last night’s game, it showed. I expect them to be better in Game 2.
-The reality is, the Ottawa Senators did not deserve to win that game. Their defence was sloppy, their goaltending wasn’t sharp and their forwards had a heck of a time stringing passes together. I’m thinking a lot of that can be chalked up to playoff jitters but whatever the reason, the have to be better if they’re going to make a series of this.
-Not really sure where to start on the PK Subban incident. The play itself combined with the absurd coverage by CBC was enough to make the blood boil. Before we get to the actual play itself, Mike Johnson, Elliotte Friedman and George Strombolopulus should all be pretty embarrassed about how they discussed the play during the second intermission. To suggest that Mark Stone was embellishing the call was irresponsible and really not fair to Stone. It was pretty clear there was an injury on the play and just because Stone was tough enough to return (playing with one hand, by the way) really doesn’t change the extent of the injury or the severity of the incident.
-And now to the play itself. First of all- what the hell is PK Subban thinking? I mean, it’s pretty clear what he was thinking but did he really think he could get away with it? That’s an unprovoked attack on Ottawa’s best forward with the puck nowhere in sight. The referees made the right call on the ice and now it’s up to the league to make the right call too. I’m not saying Subban should be suspended for the rest of the series of anything but a game seems reasonable. Mark Stone is going to play the rest of this series less than 100% which obviously hurts Ottawa’s chances.
-Lots of talk about Dave Cameron’s comments following the game. I have no problem with it. It was suggested that the referees might call the Senators tougher as a result but I really don’t think that a concern. He may get a fine for it but the reality is, Cameron is doing a good job of deflecting attention away from his team. That’s always a good thing in the playoffs. Cameron is a rookie Head Coach when it comes to the playoffs but that’s a veteran move.
