SHARKSPAGE

WCF Game 3: Post-game comments by San Jose Sharks head coach Todd McLellan, Vancouver Canucks head coach Alain Vigneault

SAN JOSE SHARKS HEAD COACH TODD MCLELLAN POST-GAME COMMENTS

Post-game comments by San Jose Sharks head coach Todd McLellan:

Q. What did you like most about the way your team played tonight?

COACH McLELLAN: I thought our intensity was much improved from where it was in Vancouver. I thought we played harder, we won more battles.

All the things that we talked about, all of us as a group yesterday, we were much better in a lot of areas. I liked our penalty kill, still gave up two goals, but it came through when it needed to, on the five-on-three and the power-play. Probably the difference at the end of the night was the five-on-three goal.

Q. Was that the best single game you’ve seen Patrick Marleau play since you’ve been here?

COACH McLELLAN: There have been a lot of good games. This was a big game for him, a big one for his line. It’s hard to pick Patty’s best because he’s played a lot of good ones.

Q. We saw Couture came back. What is his status?

COACH McLELLAN: Logan will be fine. He’ll be playing in Game 4.

Q. Can you talk about the importance after Vancouver gets that first goal to weather the storm, not allow that quick second goal?

COACH McLELLAN: I thought that was a real important sequence for us to play the next four, five, six minutes, try and regain our composure. They got a little momentum there.

When we got to the timeout, which was nice, we scored the five-on-three goal. Made a big difference. It kind of calmed us down again. So much better composure tonight on our behalf.

Q. Can you talk a little bit about Patrick Marleau, specifically what he was doing tonight that was helping this team go.

COACH McLELLAN: Well, he competed hard. He was on loose pucks. He skated. He blocked shots. He was good in the faceoff circle. Patty is a multifaceted player. He’s got tons of ability and he can play in any situation. When he’s playing well, you just turn him loose and let him go.

Q. Somebody has to ask about the decision to play the fourth line you chose to play and the one you chose not to play tonight.

COACH McLELLAN: We’ll deal with the one that played. I thought they did a tremendous job. I thought Desi and Ginner both went in and provided lot of energy. Jammer was a calming influence on that line. I felt comfortable using them.

The way the night went, with so many power-plays and penalty kills back and forth, it was hard to get them probably what they deserved, which was a little more ice time.

Q. What did you think of the McGinn call? Do you think there will be anything more than that?

COACH McLELLAN: Well, those situations are always reviewed. Whether there will be any more than that, the league will deal with that with Jamie. I had a chance to watch it on the video. Referees probably made the right call on the ice, there’s no doubt about it. I don’t think there was any intent on Jamie’s behalf.

We hope that Rome is healthy. We don’t want to see that happen to anybody. Could very easily be one of our players in that situation. We do wish him well.

Q. Todd, you got three goals in the first period this time. You played other good first periods and not got that goal production. What is the trick to that? Did you start to see the team you recognized from late in the regular season tonight?

COACH McLELLAN: Well, late in the regular season is not a good point for us to go to. We saw that team. We played 15 playoff games. We saw that team in a number of games in the playoffs.

The last two have not been anywhere near par for our group. So it was nice to see us return to the way we can play.

As far as the start goes, it’s something that we hope to get. The power-play was very sharp. Got us the lead. Eventually probably won us the game.

Q. What are the elements that make the change between the team that takes all the penalties last game to the team that is drawing the penalties? Is it as simple as taking Eager out of the lineup?

COACH McLELLAN: No, I don’t think it’s as simple as taking Ben out of the lineup. Ben Eager played four games against us last year and played very effectively for Chicago and didn’t take any penalties. He has the discipline to control himself. We just felt we would go with a different lineup.

We lost our composure in Game 2. We admitted it. I think that’s the first thing we needed to do. Secondly, our leadership group is pretty strong in the locker room. And it’s so intense out there right now. The game, there’s so much passion in it, when you’re playing ahead, you’re not chasing the game, the other team has a tendency to get frustrated.

They were probably the exact opposite of what we were in Vancouver.

Q. How is it that a team can generate so much more pace and have more legs than it did in the opening two games? Tactical or sheer will?

COACH McLELLAN: Most of it’s will. Some nights you feel better. Some nights you just have it. Some nights the other team doesn’t feel as good. There’s physical reasons for it.

There is some tactics to it. But it didn’t change much from Game 1 and 2 really. The players will tell you that. It’s about executing.

When you execute and make plays, you’re faster. When you bobble it, you’re batting it around, it’s in your feet, you’re not moving, you’re slower. It’s as simple as that.

Q. As the power-plays were there obviously in the first period. How much does that have to do with the power-plays and how much has to do with understanding your down 2-1 in the series?

COACH McLELLAN: I think our group, individuals within our group, spoke to you today about approaching it like Game 7. They obviously did that in the first period.

My answer to that was I’d like them to approach Games 1 through 7 like it was Game 7. We’ll see if we can replicate that again on Sunday afternoon.

Q. When Logan came back onto the bench, were you the one that sent him back in? Did you say anything to him?

COACH McLELLAN: Logan did come back on the bench. I was excited about seeing him. At that point he sat down, he wasn’t quite ready to go. We got him out of that situation.

As I said earlier, he’ll play. He’s fine.

VANCOUVER CANUCKS HEAD COACH ALAIN VIGNEAULT POST-GAME COMMENTS

Post-game comments by Vancouver Canucks head coach Alain Vigneault:

Q. Just wondering the combination of your goaltender in this building, if you’re considering a change in that area for Game 4?

COACH VIGNEAULT: No.

Q. What did you think of the hit on Rome?

COACH VIGNEAULT: Well, if I was Aaron Rome, I’d be upset right now. But I know that they got the right call on the ice. We’ll see what happens.

Q. Alain, would you say this was more about what they did positive than what you did negative or how would you look at how this game went?

COACH VIGNEAULT: Well, we gave that team I think it was 10 power-plays. I thought we were pretty disciplined.

So if I were to comment on what I think of the penalties, I’d get a pretty big fine so I’m going to save my money.

Q. Is there a possibility that Rome and/or Ehrhoff could miss Game 4?

COACH VIGNEAULT: Yes, both.

Q. (No microphone.)

COACH VIGNEAULT: Well, you know, I think Kevin’s intentions were real good. But on certain occasions sometimes he wanted to do a little bit too much out there, got him in trouble. But, you know, overall, he tried real hard, and that’s what we want our players to do at this time of the year.

Q. Alain, at one point in the first period you were getting out-shot 15-1. Is that a direct result of the penalties or more than that?

COACH VIGNEAULT: All their shots were on the power-play, so that’s what it was.

WCF Game 3: Joe Thornton, Patrick Marleau, Antti Niemi post-game press conference comments

THORNTON, MARLEAU, NIEMI AT POSTGAME PRESS CONFERENCE

SAN JOSE SHARKS GOALTENDER ANTTI NIEMI POSTGAME PRESS CONFERENCE

SAN JOSE SHARKS ALTERNATE CAPTAIN PATRICK MARLEAU POSTGAME PRESS CONFERENCE

Post-game comments by captain Joe Thornton:

(On difference playing Sedin line more than Kesler line) They are both centerman, both good lines. We try to play the same way, it doesn’t matter what line we play against. To be honest with you it was as normal a game for us, go out and work hard and try to produce. Todd (McLellan) never tells us who we are playing against. If we are not starting, he will yell down and say ‘hey, you got this line’. That is pretty much it.

(The fourth goal) Very important. 5-on-3, they didn’t capitalize on theirs. You never know, it is 3-1 at that point. You really don’t know at that point that the goal is going to be the game winner. You take every shift in, I just saw Patty, and Boyle worked it back and forth. Good shot, I think right under the crossbar. Patrick made a perfect pass over, and Boyle got all of it I guess.

Every game for us right now is game 7. We realize how important tonight was. Next game is going to be more important. Ever game for us is going to be game 7, we realize what’s at stake. The guys showed up, fans were into it, they gave us an extra boost. We know the importance of winning tonight.

We just had our legs (in the first period). The puck was in, we were getting back and we drew some penalties. When we got our power play, we executed well. Just putting pucks behind (their d) and retreiving pucks, we did that early.

(Is it important dominating the first and third periods?) We are just after wins.

Post-game comments by alternate captain Patrick Marleau:

Things are just starting to go in. I am playing with some good players obviously, best passer in the league, and getting to some good areas. He is finding me, and the pucks are starting to go in.

It is nice to produce and help the team win, but what it boils down to you do whatever it takes to win. I think each line played really well tonight, we are going to need that again in the next game.

I think each line was going good (in the first period). We were forechecking and that is why we were able to get those penalties, draw those penalties and allow us to go out there and score those goals.

Post-game comments by goaltender Antti Niemi:

(On the 5-on-3) I thought we had a really compact three guys there. We were able to keep them on the outside. We did a pretty good job on that.

WCF Game 3: Green Man arms race turned Teal and Orange for game 3 in San Jose

TEAL AND ORANGE MEN SPEND QUALITY TIME WITH #3 KEVIN BIEKSA IN 2ND

TEAL MEN, BARRACUDA THREE, SUPPORTERS AND RANDOM FAN GET FIRED UP IN 3RD

TEAL MAN REPRISES GM2 DISPLAY IN VANCOUVER FOR #17 RYAN KESLER - CBC

'NO DIVING ALLOWED' SIGN FOR #17 RYAN KESLER, #14 BURROWS IN 3RD - CBC

The Green Man playoff arms race that started in Vancouver turned Teal and Orange as it made its way down to San Jose. While receiving a fraction of the airtime on CBC in Canada that the Green Men were awarded, the Teal Man duo and Barracuda Three (orange) carried on a fantastic running theater next to the Canucks penalty box in game 3. The group broke out a flower bonnet for a first period penalty, and then utilized an inspired Kevin Hasselhoff swimwear photo when former Shark and current German Christian Ehrhoff made his way to the box.

The neoprened gaggle went into overdrive when Kevin Bieksa made a pair of trips to the box in the second period. They had a hand drawn portrait of Bieksa, a fair representation that also included some constructive criticism. Bieksa responded with a squirt of water through the glass. Asked after the period if they believe they had gotten into the emotional defenseman’s head, “absolutely,” one of the Teal Men replied. “We want to thank him for acknowledging and squirting water on us, it let’s us know we are doing our job well.”

The group was not finished. They reprised game 2’s penalty box display in Vancouver, with a Teal Man flashing neoprene and a thong to Ryan Kesler in the third period. They also displayed a helpful ‘No Diving’ sign when Burrows joined Kesler in the box, and a pair of teal plastic heads (insert pun here) for an unknown reason. Shame on Canada for their disproportionate penalty box antic censorship. They may have been organized plants in San Jose instead of the diehard fans in Vancouver, but it was pulled off about as well as possible in a critical game 3. Their best performance of the night came with no penalty. Joe Thornton registered a hit at the blueline, and the teal and orange neoprened crew on the glass offered #19 a polite golf clap in unison. Awesome.

Note to San Jose PD, Let the Cars Bounce!!!

A LOW RIDER BOUNCES IN FRONT OF THRONG OF HOCKEY FANS IN DOWNTOWN SJ

SLICK RIDE FEATURED PLAYOFF FLAG, REAR HOOD PAINTING, NEON BACK WINDOW SIGN

A sight you will not see in Vancouver: An hour after the Sharks earned a 4-3 win over the Canucks a crowd of 40 San Jose and Vancouver fans gathered on the corner of West Santa Clara street and San Pedro Square. Quickly pulled over, but missed a low rider bouncing it’s front wheels 4-6 feet in the air in front of the cheering throng. The low rider jiggled and adjusted itself as it made it’s way down the strip, but the driver and the passenger noted they could not bounce again due to the danger of getting a ticket from the police. There should be a moratorium: cars should be able to bounce downtown up to but not exceeding 2 hours after a Sharks playoff win. It’s only common sense.

In 20 years of watching hockey in San Jose and San Francisco, I have never seen that before.

How will San Jose fans address the Green Man, Vancouver-vs-celebrity fan arms race?

PLAID AND STRIPES GREEN MEN VS DOUGLAS MURRAY GM1 - VERSUS

DANY HEATLEY NOT IMPRESSED WITH GREEN MEN GM1 - VERSUS

NOT A GREEN MAN, NOT A FAN OF BEN EAGER IN GM2? - SCREENSHOT/CBC

In addition to the players on the ice, fans inside HP Pavilion and the city of San Jose itself will be on display tonight for the third game of the Western Conference Finals. The question that almost certainly is not on the mind of head coach Todd McLellan, or any of the players, how will the loudest fans in the NHL respond to the Green Man/celebrity-rivalrly atmosphere that is building steam with each playoff game Vancouver participates in? Hockey mad Vancouver-ites have already mowed over Chicago celebutantes Vince Vaughn and Kevin James in the first round, ahem, make his head bleed. They also took several runs at wholesome country singer Carrie Underwood in the second round as well as a feelgood Nashville Predators team making their first ever appearance in the second round. San Jose had to endure a celebrity flood in the WCQF against Los Angeles. Taunts by late night talkshow host Craig Ferguson, as well as appearances by David and Victoria Beckham, Cuba Gooding Jr. and Will Ferrell in so-Cal. Kid Rock may or may not have helped propel Detroit to a seventh game in the WCSF, but in the end it was much ado about nothing.

What San Jose brings to the table are sport and music icons impervious to Canadian hockey cynicism. Olympic gold medalist Kristi Yamaguchi and legendary Canadian singer/songwriter Neil Young were both present and accounted for during an emotional game 7 win against the Detroit Red Wings in the second round. Kristi Yamaguchi is the Bay Area’s version of Wayne Gretzky, capable of immobilizing a hockey rink with a flood of young fans. A successful broadcaster and Dancing With the Stars champion in 2008, Yamaguchi recently completed a children’s park in her hometown of Fremont as part of her Always Dream Foundation. Yamaguchi is married to current CSN analyst and former Stanley Cup Champion Bret Hedican. Neil Young is a prominent musician and activist whose music continues to inspire generations young and old. In addition to his song being used as intro music, Metallica frontman James Hetfield has also been a regular visitor over the years. Not a lot of easy targets for the Green Men

Vancouver’s Green Man penalty box duo of Sully and Force escaped any major restrictions after a run-in with the NHL, they are no longer allowed to make contact with the glass or do handstands, but in game 1 of the Western Conference Finals against San Jose they did not have an overwhelming impact on the Sharks player roster. In fact, most of the Sharks appeared slightly bemused. “I think they’re great. We’re in the entertainment industry, and I think they’re hilarious. I get a kick out of them.” San Jose defenseman Douglas Murray told the Mercury News. They taunted one of the heaviest hitters in the league, and also the founder of the uber-tap, with a Don Cherry cardboard cutout along with a plaid sportcoat and striped tie. The duo were rebuked by Don Cherry on Hockey Night in Canada for combining plaid and stripes.

In Vancouver for game 2 the Green Men were replaced by a somewhat oversharing female fan. “I know we couldn’t be there but I hope we sent a suitable replacement (or is it replacements?),” they said via twitter. It remains to be seen if Sully and Force will make the trip to SJ, but they could be met by a Sharks devouring a Canuck, or the wig-wearing bail bondsman duo behind the bench. San Jose has also had a few replacement Green Men show up during the regular season.

The focus on HP Pavilion for game 3 will center around the enormous crowd noise generated inside the Tank. NHL Network analyst and former player Kelly Chase recently said the noise is so loud, sometimes the players can’t hear themselves think. If it gets rolling, it could make communication between Canucks defenseman, and the defenseman and the goaltender difficult. San Jose vs Detroit Game 7 featured the loudest decibel reading of the playoffs to date inside HP Pavilion, 116.8 after Logan Couture’s first period goal. That is the near equivalent of a jet engine running inside a closed building.

There is also a downside to being the loudest building in the NHL. Celebrating San Jose’s 20th anniversary season, and with close to 10 years in Oakland, the Bay Area has cultivated a sophisicated hockey fan base both in the stands, and with the largest ice hockey (4 rink) and roller hockey (3 rink) facilities on the West Coast of the U.S. That being said, the doors are open to hardcore fans, casual fans, and non-sports fans alike. Everyone is welcome. At times the tension inside the Tank can add pressure, but the building employed a great strategy against LA they should adopt again for Vancouver. Every time fans were unsettled with an unsuccessful power play, the mascot SJ Sharkie would use a Beat-LA chant to focus the energy against the opposing team. It had such a positive effect focusing fans on opponents, it should be used in each playoff game moving forward.

Given the fact that neither Van-cou-ver or Can-uck-s lend themselves to readily accessible chants, San Jose may have to get creative for Round 3.

DOH Podcast #151: Reliving Game 2, Ben Eager’s penalty filled performance, unclear fix for Sharks problems, third period problems throughout playoffs

[audio:http://dudesonhockey.com/podcast/doh_2011_0518.mp3]

Mike Peattie and Doug Santana relive a horrific game 2 performance, break down the 1 line that is working and the 3 lines that are not, discuss Logan Couture’s critical mistakes, problems San Jose are having maintaining after scoring a goal, the problems Pavelski-Mitchell-Wellwood are having making an impact against the Lapierre-Torres line, the fact that the Sharks have been outscored 12-20 in the third period during the playoffs, 1-4 in game 2, Ben Eager’s penalty filled effort, Kent Huskins replacement performance and the chances defenseman Jason Demers may return in the series, and both discuss what can be done to right the ship on the 151st episode of the Dudes on Hockey podcast.

This Sharks podcast is posted here with permission. Visit dudesonhockey.com for more coverage of the team or download the MP3 file directly here.

Examining line matchups, shift charts, special teams battle in first two games of the Western Conference Final

SHIFT CHART WCF GM1 VAN-SJ - TIMEONICE.COM

The San Jose vs Vancouver Western Conference Final series was expected to shake out a litte differently than the Sharks experience against Detroit in the second round. With two deep puck possession teams, Todd McLellan and Mike Babcock were prepared to roll lines without as much emphasis on matchups except when it came to the faceoff circle. San Jose tried to utilize more than the 3 line attack it used against Los Angeles, and Detroit had an advantage with experience and speed (but not health) across 4 lines. It was strength against strength.

Against a more north-south Vancouver squad on home ice for two games, both coaches went into the series noting that they were going to roll 4 lines, but there were some critical adjustments made in game 1. San Jose’s top line of Patrick Marleau, Joe Thornton and Devin Setoguchi faced Vancouver’s second line of Ryan Kesler, Chris Higgins and Mason Raymond only once in the first period. Thornton was switched up with Torrey Mitchell and Kyle Wellwood on a makeshift third line possibly to create a matchup problem if Kesler was going to be exclusively used to target him in a shutdown role. A pair of first period penalty kills hindered that adjustment.

In the second the big two plus Setoguchi faced the Kesler line twice. After a successful penalty kill, and after Marleau’s 4th goal of the playoffs on the power play at 8:44, Alain Vigneault opted for the Lapierre line against Marleau-Thornton-Seto twice, and the Sedin line twice. Vancouver was chasing a little with two bad line changes, but with 3 minutes left in the second the Sharks were in complete fire sale mode in front of their own net. Alexander Edler fired a hard shot that broke the shaft of Marc-Edouard Vlasic’s stick, then set up Salo for a hard one timer at the point. Chris Higgins was planted on the ice in front by Ryane Clowe, then moved to the right of Antti Niemi by Dan Boyle as he tried to battle for a rebound off traffic. On the left side of Niemi a stickless Vlasic tried to neutralize the blade of Mason Raymond, but in an intense battle he used a headlock and made a stomach save on a point shot to keep the puck out of the net. Ryan Kesler and Alexander Edler had opportunities from outside, but they could not get it past the mass of humanity in front. The second period was not over. A quick transition out of their own zone, and Raffi Torres beating Ian White and Torrey Mitchell along the wall set up Danish phenom Jannik Hansen with speed in the offensive zone. Hansen took a pass on his forehand in stride and tried to outwait Antti Niemi far side, but Niemi ate him up whole. The Sharks were reeling after two, and it would not get any better in the third.

San Jose looked sluggish in the third period, as much a part of the mad scramble a period earlier, and as much a part of the mentally and physically draining 7-game series against Detroit. San Jose was outworked by Vancouver on their second goal, and an ill-advised Dany Heatley elbowing call 32 seconds later set the table for Vancouver to get the go-ahead goal 1:21 later. In comeback mode, the Marleau-Thornton-Setoguchi line took 5 shifts. Against Kesler line once, the Sedin line three times, and Kesler line again in the final seconds. Defensively, they faced Vancouver’s top unit of Dan Hamhuis and Kevin Bieksa for all but one shift in the final 20 minutes. San Jose’s second line of Clowe-Couture-Heatley skated 5 shifts in the final comeback mode 12 minutes. The first shift against the Kesler line, three against the Lapierre line, and the last against the Sedin line. Wellwood-Pavelski-Mitchell also took five shifts in the comeback attempt, with Eager subbing once.

With an undisclosed injury to puck moving second year defenseman Jason Demers, the Sharks inserted veteran defenseman Kent Huskins into the lineup for the first time since February 19th. Huskins sat the final 2 months of the season with an undisclosed injury, but his absense also cleared room salary-wise for Ian White, Kyle Wellwood and Ben Eager’s addition to the lineup. Defenseman Niclas Wallin blocked a game high 4 shots, and registered 3:09 on the penalty kill. Marc Edouard Vlasic registered a whopping 3:53 shorthanded, 22 minutes total, 4 hits, and could have been credited with a pair of saves in the second. After going with a 4th line of Eager-Nichol-Ferriero for game 7 against Detroit, Todd McLellan opted for Mayers-Nichol-Eager in game 1 against Vancouver. Mayers (4:37), Nichol (5:28) and Eager (6:48) saw only spot duty in the third period as the Sharks tried to rally for a comeback. After a pair of phenomenal series against Los Angeles and Detroit, Kyle Wellwood registered a playoff low of 10:53 and saw some duty on the fourth line.

SHIFT CHART WCF GM2 VAN-SJ - TIMEONICE.COM

The lineups were fairly similar for game 2 as they were for game 1, with only minor lineup changes. Veteran fourth liner Jamal Mayers was inserted in place of Benn Ferriero for San Jose. Speedy winger Jeff Tambellini earned a start in place of Tanner Glass on Vancouver’s fourth line. Without practing earlier in the week, defenseman Jason Demers was still a scratch with a lower body injury for the Sharks. Defenseman and long-time Shark nemisis Keith Ballard was a healthy scratch for the Canucks. Mikael Samuelsson did not play in game 1 or game 2 for the Canucks. According to Ben Kuzma of the Vancouver Province, Samuelsson has been ruled out of game 3 and 4. He has not traveled with the team, and the original San Jose draft pick is expected to undergo season ending surgery. Former Shark Manny Malhotra (eye) skated Wednesday during practice in Vancouver.

The adjustments for San Jose from game 1 to game 2 were critical, but the game would be influenced heavily by special teams play. Execution and discipline were areas the Sharks were lacking considerably. San Jose needed to put forth a more complete 60 minute effort, tighten up in the defensive zone (as they did over the second half of the season). Todd McLellan’s team not only needed to get the puck deep, but get the puck deep and beat Vancouver for possession and/or battles along the boards. That did not happen for the bulk of game 1, and a late meltdown of sorts prevented that from happening in game 2.

The turning point happened in the second. After Patrick Marleau’s power play goal in the first, defenseman Kevin Bieksa dropped the gloves and got the better of Marleau in the second period. Sharks enforcer Ben Eager was incensed on the bench, yelling at the Canucks players through the plexiglass divide. Eager had taken a matching minor in the first period, a 2 minute roughing call equalled by Raffi Torres. In the second period Eager displayed “a complete lack of discipline,” according to NHL Network analyst and former player Kelly Chase. Many times players will place their body against the plexiglass, absorb a hit, and send the initiating checker hurtling in the other direction. With less than 30 seconds left in the second period, Eager bounced Daniel Sedin off the glass like a rubber ball. Sedin had little time to adjust for the impact or the landing. On such a borderline play, the Sharks were lucky to escape with only a 2 minute minor. A penalty they were able to kill.

Vancouver was outraged. Outraged! Depsite avoiding two first period high sticking calls, one on Setoguchi, and another that would have been a clear double minor with Thornton dripping blood across his face, they protested the lack of a stiffer call on Eager. With his team trying to right the ship, Eager took another ill advised penalty early in the third. Well off the play, Eager skated into Mason Raymond from behind, stuck out his leg, and earned a tripping call. The Canucks are well known for embellishing plays. Head coach Alain Vigneault mocked the reputation on Daniel Sedin’s hit after the game, but embellishment or not the hit on Raymond had to be called. Higgins scored an insurance goal, 4-2. After a mental lapse and a long skate to the bench by Logan Couture resulted in a too many men on the ice penalty, Eager took another roughing call at 17:27 after he scored a goal and stood on top of the goaltender, and he took a cross checking plus 10 minute misconduct at 19:51. Eager has struggled with discipline and composure problems during his previous stops in Chicago and Atlanta. With the Blackhawks in last year’s Western Conference Finals, Eager was perfect in his limited role. He used his straight line speed and tenacity to wear down the Sharks by finishing checks, and he stayed out of the penalty box. In three rounds for the Sharks this postseason, Eager has 41 penalty minutes in only 10 starts. Too often, he is having a net negative impact on 5-on-5 play. The Sharks need him to not only play hard, but to play smart. To this point that has been something he has not been able to accomplish.

The Sharks killed 3 of 4 power plays in Sunday’s 3-2 loss. On Wednesday for game 2, San Jose would allow 3 power play goals on 6 man advantage opportunities. Up front, Joe Pavelski (3:01) and Torrey Mitchell (3:47) logged the bulk of the minutes short-handed, impacting the ability of the puck posession third line to create offense 5-on-5. On the back end, Kent Huskins logged 4:08 penalty kill time in only his second game back from a 2 month break. His defensive partner Marc-Edouard Vlasic logged a game high 4:36 shorthanded.

Noticeable in game 1, besides the lopsided nature of the officiating, was how different Vancouver’s power play was from Detroit’s. Also how a Vancouver power play setup could differ from unit to unit, or from man advantage to man advantage. The first Vancouver penalty on Sunday night was deliberate and cautious, something that changed considerably as the game progressed. Detroit curls back all 5 players in the d-zone, then builds up a head of steam before hitting the neutral zone and the blueline. On Wednesday night, Daniel Sedin (5:26), Henrik Sedin (4:59) and Ryan Kesler (5:18) all passed the 4 minute mark on the power play. Christian Ehrhoff (6:08) and Alexander Edler (5:08) logged the bulk of the minutes on the blueline a man up.

“What Vancouver does well (on the PP),” Kelly Chase said on the NHLN. “They just adapt. If they see something, they will roll in and out. You see Higgins rolling in and out… The adapt to the weakness of the other team.”

Similar to the success they had holding on to the puck behind the net in game 1, Vancouver used that area to settle down their first power play. Unlike game 1, San Jose was a little less tentative and hesitant to play the man behind the net. The Canucks had no problem entering the zone with the man advantage, but San Jose won more battles to the puck early. After Couture stole the puck shorthanded in the neutral zone, he lost it trying to dangle around a Sedin. Henrik dragged the puck low before moving it to Dan Hamhuis at the point. A flubbed shot was corraled by Daniel. A give-and-go with Henrik left Antti Niemi out of position, and Daniel deposited it far side with 12 seconds left.

On the power play that extended to the start of the third period for Vancouver, you could compare game 2 with a number of games in the first round against Los Angeles. While LA had to pressure the initial forechecker, either San Jose wasn’t getting it’s legs moving enough to get deep on the forecheck, or the skill and speed of the Canucks d was too much, San Jose never challenged the breakout shorthanded. They had trouble even getting into shooting lanes in the neutral zone. Vancouver had a clear path to the other end of the ice. Only inside of the Sharks blueline did the ice start to clog up.

With Eager off for tripping at 6:57, a o-zone faceoff loss by Vancouver was made up by a quick end-to-end rush and shot on goal. Despite another o-zone faceoff loss and a pair of neutral zone turnovers, Vancouver was able to enter the San Jose zone non-challantly and force another deep faceoff. This time they won the draw, and the second PP unit with Raymond-Higgins-Burrows creating a scoring chance down low. With Burrows planted in front and the Sharks planted along with him, Raymond found Higgins sliding into an open area, and Higgins buried it. The Canucks would add a third power play goal less than 4 minutes later. After a mental lapse, a too many men on the ice call with Logan Couture failing to make it to the bench as Joe Thornton took a pass and tried to break into the zone, the Canucks struck again. Spread out in almost a 4 corners formation, the Sharks remained in a tight grouping close around the net. The Canucks continued to slice and dice from the outside. Henrik from the goalline found Daniel Sedin cutting in front, goal. 5-2.

In the 3-goal, come-from-behind Detroit win in game 5 last round, it was Joe Pavelski marshalling his troops on the ice late. Very vocal, he was chirping on the bench, and pressing along with his third line to find their own comeback opportunity until the final second. Wednesday night shorthanded again late in the third period, even Pavelski looked a little shellshocked along with Torrey Mitchell. Vancouver had all the speed along the outside, while San Jose was sedentary in front of Niemi. After bursts of speed at the point by Torrey Mitchell and Logan Couture, eventually they let up as the penalty expired and Aaron Rome scored a trickler 2 seconds after returning to even strength. Up 7-3 with another power play, Vancouver sent out its fourth line of Victor Oreskovich, Cody Hodgson and Jeff Tambellini. An embarssing acknowledgement of how far this game was out of hand.

This biggest adjustment San Jose can make on special teams for game 3 is to simply stay out of the box. Regardless of the manpower situation or the story being played out on the ice, San Jose Sharks head coach Todd McLellan needs to sit players taking dumb penalties. In the third round of the postseason, the Western Conference Finals, it can not continue. The stakes are too great. Behind closed doors, McLellan needs to issue an edict. Play smart or sit. As good a team as Vancouver is, there is no margin for error and no room for San Jose to beat itself.

WCF Game 2: Post-game comments by San Jose Sharks head coach Todd McLellan, Vancouver Canucks head coach Alain Vigneault

Post-game comments by San Jose Sharks head coach Todd McLellan:

I think that is over-simplifying. They had more battle in their game than we did. This time of the year when you have more battle, more of a tenacity to your game, you are going to win. Ben Eager’s hit started a bit of a frustration level on our team. We didn’t handle it very well. It obviouvsly grew from there. I thought one of the turning points in my opinion was their third goal. We have a set forecheck. We have practiced that since September, and a player gets skated. All of a sudden it is in your net. Now you are chasing. You can’t chase this team. They are too good. You have to play with them, or you half to play ahead of them. From there it started to unravel.

Yes (I thought our team lost composure in third), without a doubt. I am not going to sit here and try to protect them. We lost our composure, we were frustrated. As I said earlier, when your second, you tend to be frustrated. So we have some work to do. We have some guys that need to ask themselves some questions, answer them, and pull the skates a little tighter.

We are playing against very good opponents. Tonight, in looking back and comparing it to game 1, I thought we did skate better tonight. It was something we wanted to do. I thought we created more of a forecheck tonight. They ability to sustain it wasn’t there again. All of a sudden you are chasing the game. You have to perfect the minor details, and they are doing a much better job of it. Whether it is faceoff coverage, whether it is a set forecheck, whether it is the first goal penalty killing, it is on our tape and we are 20 seconds left in a penalty kill and we want to play 1-on-1 in the neutral zone. They are doing a much, much better job of doing those little details right now.

(At the end of two periods) I thought there was still room for improvement. We often talk in numbers as coaches, we didn’t have enough players. We had some guys that really showed up and committed themselves to this team, and then we had some guys that were unsure.

We are going home. A real wise guy once told me you are never really in trouble in a series until you lose a game at home. We haven’t done that. We don’t plan on doing that. We have got to regroup. We have got to find some composure, take our battle level up. With that being said, as I mentioned there are a few people in our group, and I am not going to hide them any more. They have to ask themselves whether they want to keep on competiting.

(Which ones) I’ll hide that part. You guys get to decide.

I think Ben Eager is one of our faster forwards. I think he is one of our most physical forwards. I think that he has the ability to win battles and create scrums. I do believe the other team knows when he is on the ice. I do believe the fact that Ben played a lot more minutes tonight was rewarding for us. Now the negative, he can’t march to the penalty box on an ongoing basis. The tradeoff obviously didn’t work in our favor tonight. I would like him to play that game without going to the penalty box.

(The Bieksa-Marleau fight) I am not sure it had a major impact on the game at all. I thought maybe at that point we got a little frustrated because we wanted to even the score. That was Ben Eager taking a run at one of the Sedin’s. It probably grew from there. At this point you have got to have your emotions in check. You have got to maintain some composure. You are never really out of it, I think we talked about it last night with the Boston game, you are never really out of it. We have been down 4 and been able to fight back. Sticking to a gameplan.

Physical, we wanted to win more battles than we won in game 1. Do you want to call that physical? Yes. I think we were better than we were in game 1. Believe it or not, the score was 7-3, we were a better team tonight than we were in game 1 less the frustration and the composure, taking penalties.

I am not sure. We haven’t made that many (mistakes) heading in here. We wouldn’t have got by that red team last week doing that. Right now, I think we have to give credit to the opponent. They have got a good gameplan and they are executing it better than we are executing ours. They are playing a little harder than we are. As a result, you tend to make more mistakes. You tend to get frustrated. When you get frustrated, you take penalties. It is a vicious circle. That could be one of the reasons why.

I will take Ben Eager’s game without the penalties any night. He was an honest guy, he battled hard, skated, fought through every thing. (Do you think he crossed the line, and do you expect to have him available for game 3?) Absolutely 100% available for game 3. Didn’t see him cross the line at all.

Post-game comments by Vancouver Canucks head coach Alain Vigneault:

(Kevin Bieksa) played a real solid game again tonight. I thought both ends of the rink, his goal was a great passing execution. He beat their goaltender 5 -hole. I thought he was competing real hard, playing real well for us.

Obviously Danny (Sedin) embellished that. The league will do the right thing. Great embellishment. You guys saw the hit. I am confident the league will do the right thing.

We have talked about (discipline), I thought we have been that way all year long. We have talked about playing whistle to whistle. We have talked about staying disciplined. That’s what we have done throughout the playoffs. We did it again tonight. When their 4th line player took a run at the NHL leading scorer, possibly the MVP, we stayed focused. We stayed disciplined. We went out and played. We are confident the league is going to do the right thing.

I think this year, anytime a team has tried to play us a chippier way, our power play has responded. I thought tonight we moved the puck well. I thought we were physical when we needed to be, when the opportunity was there. Obviously our power play was important tonight, it got us some goals. Now we are going to turn the page on this one and we are going to focus on the next game.

That whole (Sedin) line obviously had some quality shifts on the ice. Protecting the puck, getting grade A chances. I think the other thing they did well tonight was creating on the rush. Our d was able to jump in the attack and to find them. They had some grade a scoring chances, and they played real well.

I think it is a combination of (the Sedins) are motivated right now, they are confident. We said before this series that we needed them to step up. They have for the first two games, and we need that to continue.

We’ve played some real good games that have been tighter and lower scoring. Tonight in the third period our power play just took over because of Eager’s penalty there, etc. We took over the game.

Obviously we have all known that Kevin (Bieksa) has been a character guy, a competitor. That is what he did tonight, that is what he has done consistently this year. On the Marleau fight, it was Marleau that dropped the gloves not Bieksa. Eager was ranting and raving at his bench going beserk. It wasn’t Kevin that dropped the mitts. It was Marleau that dropped the mitts. I am not sure what he was supposed to do there.

We expect (SJ) to play hard. They are one of the best teams in the NHL. They have got a highly skilled set there, real competitors. We are going to practice tomorrow, fly to San Jose and get ready for a real tough game.

(Aaron Rome’s goal) was a set play. He is playing well. In our mind, at both ends of the rink he has been physical. He is confident with the puck. When the opportunity has been there to jump up with the puck, he has jumped. That is what we want our defense to do.

DOH Podcast #150: sesquicentennial episode, San Jose Sharks vs Vancouver Canucks preview, Red Wings fan torture

[audio:http://dudesonhockey.com/podcast/doh_2011_0514.mp3]

Mike Peattie and Doug Santana host Chris ‘Wings fan in Sharks land” in brutal bet-payment mode, wrap-up the tight San Jose vs Detroit Western Conference Semifinal series, discuss the fate of future Hall of Fame defenseman Nicklas Lidstrom, preview the upcoming San Jose vs Vancouver #1 seed vs #2 seed Western Conference Final, how the power play and penalty kill will be critical in the series, Vancouver’s weakness 5-on-5, the depth on the Canucks blueline, Keith Ballard’s and Christian Ehrhoff’s struggles and more on the 150th sesquicentennial episode of the Dudes on Hockey podcast.

This Sharks podcast is posted here with permission. Visit dudesonhockey.com for more coverage of the team or download the MP3 file directly here.

Interview with independent goalie scout Justin Goldman: Vancouver Canucks goaltender Roberto Luongo scouting report, Pekka Rinne, Vezina outlook, Tim Thomas, late SJ goalie coach Warren Strelow’s lasting impact, Evgeni Nabokov vs Antti Niemi

VANCOUVER CANUCKS GOALTENDER #1 ROBERTO LUONGO - FILE PHOTO

VANCOUVER CANUCKS GOALTENDER – ROBERTO LUONGO
Height: 6-3, Weight: 205, Age: 32
Catches: Left, Shoots: Left

2011 WCF vs SAN JOSE: begins Sunday 5PM.
2011 WCSF vs NASHVILLE: 6GP, 4-2, 1SO, 1.67GAA, .929SV%
2011 WCQF vs CHICAGO: 7GP, 4-3, 1SO, 3.88GAA, .881SV%
2011 REGULAR SEASON: 60GP, 38-15-7, 4SO, 2.11GAA, .928SV%

Independent goalie scout and Goalie Guild founder Justin Goldman has gained a significant profile in the goaltending community. A member of the PHWA, Goldman also created the Goalie Guild independent goaltending scouting service to analyze and examine goaltenders with a fresh outlook. It was a scouting service used by the San Jose Sharks to gain information on Jonathan Quick in the first round of the playoffs. A regular analyst on Colorado radio, Justin Goldman has also contributed to NHL.com and has been a guest on several of the top hockey podcasts online to discuss goaltending topics.

In an interview with Sharkspage, Justin Goldman offered a Roberto Luongo scouting report of strengths and weaknesses prior to the first game of the Western Conference Final series that begins Sunday. Goldman also discussed different technical terms and approaches used by goaltending coaches and schools today, described Nashville Predators goaltender Pekka Rinne at length and offered a comparison between his style and that of Anaheim Ducks goaltender Jonas Hiller, discussed late San Jose Sharks goaltending coach Warren Strelow’s lasting impact on the game, compared Evgeni Nabokov and Antti Niemi, and described the step foward Detroit Red Wings goaltender Jimmy Howard took this year among other topics.

INTERVIEW WITH GOALIE GUILD FOUNDER JUSTIN GOLDMAN:

[Q] Reading about some of the changes Roberto Luongo made at the start of this season, when he switched goaltending coaches from Ian Clark to Rollie Melanson and started to play deeper in his own net, some of the technical goaltending terms and descriptions vary from team to team and coach to coach.

[A] I am one of those guys that really likes the simplified version of the position. I have had coaches where they are hardcore on angles and positioning, it overcomplicates the position when it doesn’t need to. I really liked the changes Melanson made to Luongo because it allowed him to simplify his game and take advantage of his size. Luongo is a big goaltender with really long legs, really long arms, he is a tall guy, and he doesn’t hunch over too much. So this year, he has utilized his size much more effectively.

[Q] It seems like he is not forced to make as many spectacular, acrobatic saves as he did when he played farther out.

[A] That is the thing about having him stay deeper in his net. He is closer to his posts, so on backdoor plays or on line rushes, 3-on-2’s, he is not forced to cover as much space. The less a goaltender moves and the less his feet move, the easier it is for him to square up and set his feet for a shot, thus absorbing more pucks. If you ever see a goaltender push out to the top of his crease, but he is not 100% completely still, or if the puck comes to him while he is still moving, he is probably going to give up a big or bad rebound because his feet aren’t set. That is the thing about staying deeper. If you are staying deeper, you are moving less. So when a shot is fired and your feet are fully set, you are able to absorb it better and place the rebound where you want to place it.

[Q] Pekka Rinne, it is unusual how under the radar he played until he was a Vezina nominee along with Luongo and Tim Thomas this season, he is so technical but he still has that size and that athleticism, and determination to not give up on a play. How would you compare the 6-foot-3, 217-pound Luongo with the 6-foot-4, 207-pound Pekka Rinne after seeing them battle head-to-head in the second round? It was a great opportunity to evaluate both together.

[A] For both goaltenders, size is a huge advantage. But the biggest advantage Rinne has over Luongo is first off, his compete level is through the roof. You look at two goaltenders right now that have visibly noticable compete levels, Tim Thomas is one, Rinne is the other. Thomas looks to me like he is hooked up to a battery charger, over-amplified. He has so much energy, he is explosive, competitive. He is always ready. He always has that fierce focus. Rinne is the same way. He has a really, really high energy level. The other thing about Rinne that is an advantage, but one that he still needs to moderate, is like you said that athleticism. He has the ability to drop into the butterfly, and instantly pop right back up again. He is much quicker at doing those sort of things than Luongo. Once Luongo is down, it takes him awhile to get up. Luongo moves a little bit slower. Rinne is kind of like Tim Thomas in the sense that he is extremely over-amplified. He has got a ton of energy, but he still has to work at containing that energy, knowing when to use it and when to harness it and hold back. Conserving his energy a little bit will go a long way in making him more positionally sound.

[Q] I noticed with Thomas, I always kind of look at the face of the shooters when he makes a spectacular save. Sometimes you see a mouth open and just shock on their face. They have an empty net for a shot and then all of a sudden there is this guy flying by. Would you say that Roberto Luongo and Pekka Rinne are going to be runners up to Tim Thomas for the Vezina Trophy this year?

[A] I think so. At the end of the day, even though voting is supposed to be based on the regular season, general managers are human beings. They are probably going to look at the playoffs and be slightly influenced. It is not supposed to count, but we have seen Thomas be almost the most consistent goalie in the playoffs. I think it will come into account when they make their final votes. Just because of the really flashy statistics, the save percentage (.938SV%), the fact that he was coming off the hip surgery, and being 38-years old. There are too many little things on Thomas’ side for him not to win it. I think they look at Luongo and note the team in front of him, the best team in the Western Conference. Rinne, I hope he gets second place votes because he doesn’t have the team in front of him, he doesn’t have the offense. He is probably more skilled than the two other goaltenders when it comes to technique and butterfly. I have a feeling Rinne is going to win a Vezina in the next couple of years.

[Q] Would you describe him as a technical goaltender? I always look at Jonas Hiller in Anaheim. Time after time after time, his technique was the same, extraordinarily consistent. I noticed a similar precision with Rinne, and in the second round against Vancouver he really demonstrated his ability to dominate in goal and keep Nashville in the series.

[A] I would say Hiller is a more static goaltender. Like you said, he is really consistent. Many times, he has the same exact technique regardless of the type of shot, so he relies more on positioning than reflexes. Part of that comes from his work with Francois Allaire. That comes into play, and that can get complicated because Allaire is known for teaching a blocking style. He teaches goalies to simplify their game and movements in all technical areas of the butterfly. I agree with a lot of that, but at the same time I am not a fan of exclusively blocking goaltenders. The big difference between Rinne and Hiller? Rinne is a dynamic goaltender. He doesn’t have one set way of using a butterfly to make a save. He will do whatever it takes to make the save in the way that makes him feel most comfortable. If he has to be a little desperate and make that last-second kick, or if he has to get his hands in front of his body to absorb a shot, which is one of his biggest strengths, he will do it.

[Q] He also has a pretty unconventional goaltending coach in Mitch Korn, do you think that has played into his style a little bit? I have read a lot about Mitch Korn’s innovative teaching on and off the ice.

[A] Mitch Korn and Francois Allaire are two of the best goalie coaches in the world, but they teach things differently. If you talk to a lot of goaltending coaches around the world, I think the way the position is starting to change now, as opposed to how it was maybe in the late 90’s, early 2000’s, is that back then everybody was really strict, almost robotic, butterfly. That is what made Giguere so successful. That was the more popular way of coaching goaltenders. Now what you are starting to see with guys like Rinne and elsewhere, goalies need to be more dynamic, they need to be able to have a good balance between knowing when to block a puck, and knowing when to react and make that glove save, make that kick save, or dive out in desperation. The best goalies in the NHL today are the ones that have that perfect balance of knowing when to use the positional blocking style and when to use the reactive, flashy, desperate style. Thomas is the perfect example of that. He is definitely a more reactive goalie, unconventional, but if he needs to make a routine butterfly save, he knows how to do it. He knows how to simplify.

[Q] I actually got to speak with (late San Jose Sharks goaltending coach) Warren Strelow a couple times. One Detroit regular season game, I think the Sharks won 7-2 and the goal horn kept going off while we were talking. He was a pioneer in the goaltending world. He was the goaltending coach under Herb Brooks for the U.S. Men’s Olympic team in 1980, he was established at the high school and college levels in Minnesota. He was the first goaltending coach in the NHL for the Washington Capitals. He worked with Vezina winner Martin Brodeur in New Jersey, and he worked with Evgeni Nabokov, Vezina winner Miikka Kiprusoff and Vesa Toskala in San Jose. Many credit Strelow with establishing the goaltending coach as a part of the game. What do you think of Strelow’s impact?

[A] I would agree with that. Like you said, Strelow is a pioneer. There are a lot of goaltending coaches out there, but very few had the impact Strelow had. He really (developed personal relationships) with his goaltenders. Strelow was the kind of guy players could get to know personally. He would put the work aside and talk to his goaltenders as individuals. I think a goaltender like Nabokov really learned a lot from Strelow, on the personal side as well as learning to deal with the pressure and all the mental components that play a huge role for the goaltending position.

[Q] Strelow talked about the goaltenders in the Sharks system. He described them at the time with more of a hybrid style than the strict stand-up or butterfly styles that were used in the past, and said the team was focused on maximizing what they did well and minimizing their weaknesses. It was a little confusing hearing all the different descriptions of Nabokov inside and outside of the Bay Area. Some described him as a stand-up goaltender. Strelow called him a hybrid goaltender, but even opponents noted his stand-up style and said that they shot pucks at his feet to try to create rebounds. How would you compare Evgeni Nabokov’s and Antti Niemi’s differing styles?

[A] The biggest visible difference between Nabokov and Niemi is their stance. It is wider with Niemi and much more narrow with Nabokov. Nabokov wasn’t a stand up goalie, he just kept his feet closer together. He had a very narrow stance when he was on his skates. He would stand more upright, and he wouldn’t have the wide flare that Niemi does. Niemi has a much wider stance, he is hunched over at the shoulders, and he holds his glove really low. There are a lot of real visible differences between Niemi and Nabokov, but I would say they were similar in the fact that they relied more on their positioning, and more on getting their hips and their chest behind the puck, and letting pucks come to them, as opposed to a more active goaltender like Rinne or Thomas that would reach out to grab or deflect pucks. Nabokov was a really good student of the Tretiak style of goaltending. Vladislav Tretiak taught that narrow stance, where you stand a little more upright and it is more effective to push laterally.

[Q] I think about Nabokov, and sometimes I think his mental focus and confidence waivered at times in the playoffs towards the end, a product of not just his play but the play of the team in front of him. That brings me back to Canucks goaltender Roberto Luongo. In the first round against Chicago he was pulled twice in a row, and then inserted into the lineup when backup Cory Schneider was pulled. Schneider was one of my favorite goaltending prospects, and he was pulled. Do you think if the Sharks can get to Luongo early, those kind of mental toughness and mental focus questions will come back to haunt him?

[A] Absolutely. Vancouver is expected to win a Stanley Cup. Roberto Luongo won a gold medal for Team Canada last year (in the Vancouver Olympics). Nobody is facing more pressure right now than him. The thing about Luongo, he is not always the most attentive goaltender. There are moments in games where he is caught unaware or unprepared. He also gets up very slowly. If he gets scored on, (the body language) is noticeable. He lays on the ice, he doesn’t get up quick. He laments. You can tell he looks defeated. One of the biggest things for a goaltender when it comes to mental toughness, you can not show any signs of being beat. If you give up a goal, you need to jump right back up. You need to put your head forward, stay calm, and you need to stay up. When other teams score on Luongo, they can see that he lays back. He is sometimes overdramatic about it. It causes a spark. It causes a team to say that we are getting under this guy’s skin, we should keep firing pucks from all angles.

[Q] Sometimes when I am looking at a goaltender through a large camera lens, kind of like watching a game through a telescope, you can almost see what a goaltender is thinking by their reaction to plays. Last year I could see Detroit goaltender Jimmy Howard questioning himself. Looking down after goals, staring at the goal post, trying to figure out what went wrong. This year I thought the Sharks could get to him mentally, but I thought he showed some mental toughness in the semifinals this year.

[A] He did. The big thing about Jimmy Howard this year, there was one play I think in game 5, he gave up two goals and after the second goal he made a move like he was going to smash his stick on the crossbar. He didn’t. You could see that he wanted to, but he held back. When he did that, it was a sign to me that he was maturing, learning the mental discipline he needs. If you let the emotions go in that situation, you quickly lose control and lose focus, and you can quickly lose the game. Look what happened, he didn’t smash his stick and Detroit stayed in the game and battled back to end up winning it. That was a huge step in Jimmy Howard’s career because it showed he is mentally maturing and he understands what it takes to win hockey games for the Red Wings.

[Q] There was also the game where there was a snow shower and he checked the guy in front of him. You thought ‘here we go again’, it is going to be like last year where they get under his skin. But the games were tight. Niemi had questions too after the first round, but his teammates believed in him and head coach Todd McLellan never waivered in his support. I have been able to examine some of the scouting publication’s (McKeen’s Hockey, Red Line Report) analysis of goaltenders at different levels of play, and through the 13 years of the blog I have been able to meet a few scouts and goaltending coaches. A lot of the terminology and the systems used by different coaches, teams, or goaltending schools differ widely.

[A] I mentioned earlier on twitter that goaltending analysis is very amorphic. Everyone has their own way of breaking down the goaltending position. I try to focus on simplifying it. When I break down goals against, I don’t use a lot of technical terms that a lot of coaches use (to make it more accessible). I try to simplify it so people can understand it in a way that makes sense to them. You will hear ‘heels on the oustide of the crease’ or ‘inside-out, outside-in (or VH, half-butterfly, etc). If you are a professional NHL goaltender, you are probably already very familiar with how to square up to a shot. Some amateur goaltending coaches over-complicate the position to a fault. Goaltenders are growing up to be robots. They are not reading and reacting to plays, they are using these techniques that they learned from their goalie coach because their goalie coach taught them there was only one way to do it. That is one thing that makes (Nashville Predators goaltending coach) Mitch Korn such a great goaltending coach. He adapts to what the goaltenders have as a skill set. When he worked with guys like Dominik Hasek in Buffalo, that was something he learned and experienced. He let Hasek do his thing, and Korn simply guided him along the way and made effective changes here or there. It worked.

[Update] Goaltending coach Melanson has brought subtle changes to Luongo’s game – The Hockey News from January 2011. The Hockey News also posted a video 1-on-1 interview with Luongo this season in two parts here and here.

[Update2] Iain MacIntyre profiled Roberto Luongo and the changes new goaltending coach Rollie Melanson had on his style of play back in February for the Vancouver Sun. In addition to covering the bases on Luongo’s hockey resume: his Vezina snub in 2003, his runner-up campaign for the Hart, Vezina and Pearson awards in 2007, and his Olympic gold for Team Canada on home ice in 2010; MacIntyre also delved into a couple of the specific changes Melanson made to Luongo’s game:

Luongo plays deeper in his crease and is on the ice more because Melanson believes it’s essential to seal the bottom of the net first. Luongo has changed his footwork and the way he moves laterally, and improved his puck handling and rebound control. “His butterfly was very good right from Day 1,” Melanson said. “His puck-tracking was very good. He just had to be a little more efficient in the paint. I think he has a better understanding of covering his percentages. The game does come to him and he understands now how to close down all the little short plays so he doesn’t get leaky”…

Melanson said managing emotions and maintaining focus is at least as important for goalies as highly charged skaters. An enduring snapshot of the Canucks’ second-round playoff losses to the Chicago Blackhawks is Luongo chirping and sparring with Dustin Byfuglien.

[Update3] Rinne’s glove: where rebounds go to die – Predators love second chances prevented by a glove hand that has roots in Finnish baseball and makes saves everywhere – In Goal Magazine.

Sharks-Wings Game 7 drew record numbers locally for CSN California and Fox Sports Detroit, Games 5&7 in top 5 for Versus, CSN regional networks to be rebranded by NBC Sports

After a pair of Eastern Conference Semifinal sweeps and a 6-game series win by Vancouver, all of the eyeballs in the hockey world were on the Sharks-Wings game 7 finale Thursday night in San Jose. After record ratings came in for both local markets, interest from casual and general sports fans was strong as well. Comcast Sportsnet California earned its highest household rating ever for a Sharks playoff broadcast with a 7.14HH average (180,000 households) that topped the previous high of 2010’s game 5 finale against Detroit which earned a 6.57. This year’s game 7 finale peaked at a 10.13HH rating (256,000+ households) in the frantic final 15 minutes as Detroit came at San Jose in waves trying to extend their season. It was only the second game 7 on home ice at HP Pavilion after the Sharks ushered Calgary out of the playoffs in 2008.

In Detroit, Fox Sports Detroit witnessed a similar surge in game 7 viewership. According to Nielsen Media Research, from the 9PM local start time to the near midnight finish, FSD recorded a 22.5HH rating (423,855 households) and a 39 share in the Detroit market. It was the highest rated broadcast on FSD, topping the previous 19.5HH/26 share mark set in Detroit for game 6. On Versus, the San Jose vs. Detroit series did extraordinarily well. Four of the Western Conference Semifinal games between the two powerhouse teams ranked in the top 10 in total viewers for Versus playoff broadcasts in 2011. A 3-goal third period comeback by Detroit in game 5 earned 1,627,000 viewers for 2nd place this post season, game 7’s finale earned 1,251,000 viewers for 4th place, and games 6 (1,021,000 viewers) and 4 (944,000 viewers) filled out the top 10 in 8th and 10th place respectively.

Nationally a number of viewers may have been watching to see if Detroit could complete a historic comeback, or to see if San Jose would continue it’s perpetual playoff frustration, but year in and year out both teams are building a reputation for delivering an entertaining brand of potent, offensive hockey. In last year’s Sharks-Wings semifinal matchup, Versus EVP Marc Fein told Sharkspage that San Jose’s roster full of household names and Detroit’s storied Stanley Cup tradition were strong draws. “It’s natural that games in this series will draw huge national interest,” Fein said. Game 2 of the 2010 WCSF between Detroit and San Jose drew a massive 1.77 million audience for Versus, the most watched semifinal playoff game on cable dating back 10 (now 11) years. The interest in two of the Western Conference’s most dominant offenses appears to be neither superficial or fleeting.

There will be more changes in store for the Comcast-owned Versus channel this offseason. After Comcast’s takeover of NBC Universal, Versus may be renamed the NBC Sports Channel this summer to reflect a consistent brand across networks. Sports Media Watch noted last week that changes may also be coming to Comcast’s regional sports networks soon as well. According to a comment by NBC Sports Group chairman Dick Ebersol, Comcast’s regional sports networks may be rebranded something similar to NBC Sports Philadelphia or NBC Sports Chicago. It should impact Northern California’s two Comcast regional sports networks, CSN Bay Area and the home of the Sharks on CSN California. CSN’s regional sports network consists of 14 channels that deliver over 2,400 sporting events each year.

The broadcasts of Stanley Cup Conference Final and Stanley Cup Final games will move exclusively to Versus and NBC, but locally CSN California will ramp up it’s coverage of the playoffs as well. According to CSNCA’s sideline reporter Brodie Brazil, the ‘Sharks Postgame Live’ show was renamed ‘Sharks Playoff Central’ and will feature commentary by broadcaster Randy Hahn and analyst and former assistant coach Drew Remenda. Versus will feature a half hour ‘Hockey Central’ preview show before each Sharks-Canucks Conference Final game it broadcasts, with a half hour post-game ‘Sharks Playoff Central’ program on CSN California following the action.

A combined NBC Sports Group schedule of San Jose Sharks vs Vancouver Canucks Western Conference Final television coverage:

NBC Sports Group combined San Jose Sharks vs Vancouver Canucks WCF television schedule:

Sunday, May 15

4:30PM – Hockey Central on VERSUS
5PM – Sharks at Canucks Game 1 on VERSUS
7:30PM – Sharks Playoff Central on Comcast SportsNet California
10:30PM – SportsNet Central on Comcast SportsNet Bay Area

Wednesday, May 18

5PM – Chronicle Live on Comcast SportsNet Bay Area
5:30PM – Hockey Central on VERSUS
6PM – Sharks at Canucks Game 2 on VERSUS
8:30PM – Sharks Playoff Central on Comcast SportsNet Plus
10:30PM – SportsNet Central on Comcast SportsNet Bay Area

Friday, May 20

5PM – Chronicle Live on Comcast SportsNet Bay Area (from HP Pavilion)
5:30PM – Hockey Central on VERSUS
6PM – Canucks at Sharks Game 3 on VERSUS
8:30PM – Sharks Playoff Central on Comcast SportsNet Bay Area (from HP Pavilion)
10:30PM – SportsNet Central on Comcast SportsNet Bay Area

Sunday, May 22

12PM – Canucks at Sharks Game 4 on NBC
6PM – SportsNet Central on Comcast SportsNet Bay Area
10:30PM – SportsNet Central on Comcast SportsNet Bay Area

* Tuesday, May 24

5PM – Chronicle Live on Comcast SportsNet Bay Area
5:30PM – Hockey Central on VERSUS
6PM – Sharks at Canucks Game 5 on VERSUS
8:30PM – Sharks Playoff Central on Comcast SportsNet Plus
10:30PM – SportsNet Central on Comcast SportsNet Bay Area

* Thursday, May 26

5PM – Chronicle Live on Comcast SportsNet Bay Area
5:30PM – Hockey Central on VERSUS
6PM – Canucks at Sharks Game 6 on VERSUS
8:30PM – Sharks Playoff Central on Comcast SportsNet California (from HP Pavilion)
10:30PM – SportsNet Central on Comcast SportsNet Bay Area

* Saturday, May 28

4:30PM – Hockey Central on VERSUS
5PM – Sharks at Canucks Game 7 on VERSUS
7:30PM – Sharks Playoff Central on Comcast SportsNet Bay Area
10:30PM – SportsNet Central on Comcast SportsNet Bay Area

* If necessary (all times PT)

DOH Podcast #149: Game 7 reaction, Ryane Clowe’s triumpant return, Antti Niemi’s strong game 7 and strong series, Pavel Datsyuk, Dan Boyle

[audio:http://dudesonhockey.com/podcast/doh_2011_0512.mp3]

Mike Peattie and Doug Santana react to the Sharks game 7 performance against Detroit, discuss the atmosphere and support inside HP Pavilion even after surrendering a 3-0 lead, Ryane Clowe’s triumphant return after sitting out game 6 with an undisclosed injury, Pavel Datsyuk’s incredible backhand laser to bring the Wings within a goal in the third period, Antti Niemi’s strong performance and strong series, Dan Boyle taking over the game, Joe Thornton’s leadership, and a resurgent Sharks penalty kill on the 149th episode of the Dudes on Hockey podcast.

This Sharks podcast is posted here with permission. Visit dudesonhockey.com for more coverage of the team or download the MP3 file directly here.

WCSF Game 7: Sharks edge past Detroit Red Wings after closest playoff series in franchise history, Patrick Marleau makes statement to East Coast and Canadian critics with game winning and series clinching goal

#44 VLASIC HAMMERED BY #8 ABDELKADER IN FRONT OF #31 NIEMI IN 3RD

#40 HENRIK ZETTERBERG, #8 PAVEL DATSYUK, #5 NICKLAS LIDSTROM PLOT ANOTHER COMEBACK ATTEMPT IN 3RD

TWO CLASS FRANCHISES ACKNOWLEDGE TIGHT SERIES IN POST-GAME HANDSHAKE LINE

Speak softly, and carry a hockey bag full of Stanley Cup Playoff game winning goals. After an off night earlier in the series, Sharks alternate captain Patrick Marleau came up big in only the second game 7 to be played on San Jose ice. In front of an animated sellout crowd, Marleau put his stamp on the awkward and clumsy mainstream media criticism directed at him with his 13th career playoff game winning goal, tied for 13th all-time in NHL Stanley Cup Playoff history.

Joe Thornton was able to score the first round series clincher against Los Angeles in overtime. Marleau did not get the opportunity for a sliding center ice celebration against Detroit, but he did provide a game winning goal that held up in regulation to eliminate the Red Wings with a 3-2 win. “It felt great, to be on the scoresheet, to be able to get the game winner, but we still have a long ways to go here and another month to play,” Marleau said after the game. “We are just going to get better.”

After building up a two goal lead and outshooting Detroit 17-11 in the first period, the Red Wings push came on strong late in the second and third periods. Henrik Zetterberg cut the Sharks lead to one in the second, converting a cross-ice pass from Filppula with Datsyuk on the doorstep. Marleau gave the Sharks their second 2-goal cushion of the game 12:13 into the third period, and San Jose needed all of it. On the play, Boyle nutmegged Brian Rafalski with a pass between the legs to a wide-open Devin Setoguchi on the left wing. Setoguchi made a slick move to corral the puck and shovel a quick shot on Jimmy Howard before the defense collapsed on him. The puck deflected by Howard, and Marleau swept it into the open net on the far side.

“It was big, it was definitely big. We would have liked to finish the series a little bit earlier, but it was a great series,” Marleau said of the game and series clinching goal. When asked about giving up a 3-games-to-0 lead, and the recent criticism heaped on him by reporters and former teammate Jeremy Roenick, Marleau noted that his focus was on the game in front of him. “You try to put it in the background… background noise, and just focus on what I can control,” Marleau said. “I still got better games ahead of me.”

“He has been battling, he just hasn’t been putting the puck in the net. He knows he has to be better,” Joe Thornton said of Marleau’s first point in the series. “I am sure that took a lot of weight off his shoulders. Now he is ready to go. Everybody in this whole Bay Area is pretty happy for him.”

Off the scoresheet, Marleau can be effective opening gaps with speed on the wing and with physical play in front of the net, but San Jose needs more of the game breaking offensive ability Pavel Datsyuk displayed on the other side of the ice. While Datsyuk and Zetterberg were able to settle their team down in critical moments and ratchet up the intensity when behind, the Sharks will need a Marleau firing on all cylinders if they want to escape the Western Conference gauntlet that leads to the Stanley Cup Finals. San Jose has all of 2 days off before facing the Presidents’ Trophy winning Vancouver Canucks.

“This year is no different than any other year. Patty, Jumbo, they become the lightning rods. When it doesn’t go well, people question them.” San Jose Sharks head coach Todd McLellan said of his regular season leading scorer. “For him to end up with the (game and series) winning goal is pretty special, for us and for him. I think the monkey will be off his back and he will be even that much better in the next series.”

Pavel Datsyuk almost single handedly brought the Red Wings back with the game on the line in the third period. Taking a pass from Brad Stuart with speed in the neutral zone, Datsyuk blew by a pair of forwards, and then went wide on 240-250 pound defenseman Douglas Murray. With Murray’s stick out in the shooting lane, and Joe Thornton’s stick coming in from behind on the back check, Datsyuk lifted a perfectly placed backhand high far-side. Too good. Playing against one of the best 2-way players in the league, sometimes you have to budget the number of goals a talent of his caliber is going to score.

As befitting the series, game 7 went down to the final seconds. On the final rush Henrik Zetterberg again hit Pavel Datsyuk in stride as he entered the zone with speed. The player who had taken over several earlier games in the series wound up on a rising slapshot from the wing, a shot that was juggled but held by Niemi. On the ensuing faceoff, Filppula won a clean draw back to Lidstrom who dumped it down low. Abdelkader forced a turnover by Vlasic, and Jonathan Ericsson pinched in and slid a pass back in front of the net. With Patrick Eaves alone on the doorstep, a late stick check by Patrick Marleau sent Eaves in one direction and the puck in another. Lidstrom and Eaves combined for another dump-in opportunity with 15 seconds left, and Darren Helm beat a pair of Sharks to the loose puck. Eaves was tied up by Vlasic as the puck was cleared. Game over.

The Sharks did not join the 1942 Toronto Maple Leafs, the 1975 Pittsburgh Penguins, or last year’s Boston Bruins as the only teams in NHL history to give up 3-0 series leads and lose in the Stanley Cup Playoffs. Vancouver escaped that fate in the opening round against Chicago. Win or lose, the “playoff choker” label would not apply to San Jose in the second round. After earning 3 OT wins against a hardened Los Angeles defense in the first round, Detroit battled back from a 3-0 deficit on their own merits. As good as Vancouver is, San Jose and Detroit may have been the best two teams in the league this season. The Red Wings took it a game at a time, and almost pulled off the impossible. 6 of the 7 games played between Detroit and San Jose were 1-goal games, and the margin of error on any given night was the slimmest the Sharks have experienced in their 20 year history to date.

Game Notes:

Game Notes: The Sharks coaching staff immediately started preparing for game 1 of the Western Conference Finals which begin in Vancouver on Sunday at 5PM. The matchup will feature two high powered offenses, and the top 2 seeds in the Western Conference. Devin Setoguchi’s first period power play goal was the Sharks first in 3+ games, after an 0-for-11 stretch. The San Jose penalty kill held Detroit scoreless on their last 12 man advantage opportunities over 3 games. According to head coach Mike Babcock, the Sharks finished with 5 power play goals in the series to Detroit’s 4, and that was the margin between winning and losing. Game 7 featured the loudest decibel reading of the playoffs to date inside HP Pavilion, 116.8 after Logan Couture’s first period goal.

Ryane Clowe returned Thursday night after missing game 6 with an undisclosed upper body injury. Clowe was physical early, and he rang a heavy first period wakeup shot off the mask of Detroit goaltender Jimmy Howard. According to longtime one season ticket holder, Clowe would have to be missing an appendage not to be the ice for the series deciding game. While Clowe was able to return, Detroit’s Johan Franzen was not able to recover enough from an ankle injury to make it into the lineup. The Red Wings suffered furthur hits to the lineup when Todd Bertuzzi suffered an undiclosed injury in the first period, and checking winger Dan Cleary left the game after a blindside collision with teammate Jiri Hudler left him motionless on the ice. “I don’t want to make any excuses, but without (Cleary), without (Bertuzzi), without (Franzen), that is a chunk of a team right there. I thought our kids hung in there, we battled. I thought we had the better of the play,” Mike Babock said of the attrition his team suffered in the second round.

Henrik Zetterberg was also at less than 100% with a knee injury that was not fully healed. While Babcock complimented his play, at times Zetterberg’s hands and brain where ahead of where his legs could take him. That was costly in the third period when he tried a hestiation move to get around the forecheck of rookie Logan Couture. A Calder favorite as much for his defensive play as for his offensive play, Couture got a stick out in front of Zetterberg and picked off his breakout pass clean. Without even adjusting the puck on his blade, Couture fired a laser of a shot that beat goaltender Jimmy Howard high short side. The Sharks were looking to press the action at the start of the second and third periods, and a big part of their effectiveness was the work ethic on display by the third and fourth lines. With Wellwood-Pavelski-Mitchell and Ferriero-Nichol-Eager getting the puck deep and applying sustained pressure, it initially blunted the Red Wings comeback attempt until the puck possession push began late in each period.

A photo gallery from the game is available here.

[Update] Heroic effort by Ian White’s wife, Kyle Wellwood’s return to Vancouver and record TV ratings for Sharks – David Pollak’s Working the Corners blog.

CSNCalifornia reporting that TV ratings for last night’s game were far and away the best numbers put up for any Shark telecast on any of the regional sports networks that have carried the team’s games since day one. The Sharks-Red Wings Game 7 registered a 7.14 average, attracting approximately 180,000 households for the entire game. The peak rating occurred from 8:30 p.m. to 8:45 p.m., a 10.13 with over 256,000 households tuned in. The previous high for CSNCalifornia? Game 5 of the 2010 Western Conference Semifinals against Detroit, which posted a 6.57.

[Update2] Depleted Red Wings battle until the end, but lose to Sharks in Game 7 – Ansar Khan for Mlive.com.

WCSF Game 7: Post-series comments by San Jose Sharks head coach Todd McLellan and Detroit Red Wings head coach Mike Babcock

Post-series comments by San Jose Sharks head coach Todd McLellan:

Patrick (Marleau) has been through an awful lot. This year is no different than any other year. Patty, Jumbo, they become the lightning rods. When it doesn’t go well, people question them. That was out there. The way we played him in the series, the amount of minutes that he got. We obviously believe in him immensely. For him to end up with the (game and series) winning goal is pretty special, for us and for him. I think the monkey will be off his back and he will be even that much better in the next series.

When you look at the goal that was scored, the third one that ended up being the winner, we were on our heels. Your top end players have to go out and settle the game down. We talked about making plays, and not being afraid to err and make mistakes. It started in our end with a breakout pass Jumbo made. It went up ice. We looked the way we should look on that shift. For Patty to score there, I thought we settled down after that a little bit. We knew their push was coming. It was a hell of a series, hell of a game.

The difference is a power play goal and our penalty kill. I thought we had a pretty good plan. They would beat us with a drop pass a lot in the series, so we adjusted a little bit. We felt that if we didn’t allow them any free entries into our zone we would have a better opportunity at killing it. We did a really good job of it. They really didn’t get set that much. The penalty killers came up big.

Why wouldn’t I have (Patrick Marleau) out there (at the end of the game). He is a world class player. He has won in a lot of pressure situations. As I said earlier, we believe in him that much. It is funny when you are up 2-0 or 3-0 someone is asking me about who is on the ice and what you did well defensively. I broke the play down, Jumbo won the faceoff, Patty cleared the puck out. Nobody was questioning Patty at that point. When you lose a few games, everybody starts questioning him. Yes he could have been better, but he was a difference maker tonight.

First of all, we were exhausted (when we took the timeout). They had about 3 of 4 real good shifts in a row. We couldn’t get out of our own end, and we weren’t winning very many faceoffs at that point. We needed to rest. we needed to settle our team down. We needed to make some plays. That was basically the message. There was no magic, no special speech. Give them time to get composed again, win the faceoff and get out.

(At intermission) We did what we always do. We addressed the chances. We addressed the players about maybe some technical stuff we wanted to clean up. I pointed out to them that we shouldn’t be afraid to make mistakes. We are not going to be perfect. If we make a mistake, we are going to live with it and we are going to be fine. We also knew the red team was going to have a hell of a push, it worked out our way.

(Chris Osgood’s comment that this was the best 7-game series he had seen) Ozzy’s has been around a long time. One of the tv crew, a gentleman who has been around for years and years prior to game 7 thought it was one of the best series as well. In the games and series that I have been involved in the NHL, your heart gets going and it gets revved up. I remember winning the Cup and how anxious you get. I felt that this round. I shared that with the players, we are going to need a little more poise, a little more composure moving ahead because those feelings are going to come back a lot quicker now.

Yes, without a doubt (we tightened up after the 2-0 lead). We still didn’t quite learn that lesson. We saw it the past few games in the third period when we got back on our heels. I felt that they needed to hear that. It was okay to err, ok to make a mistake and to play kind of free if you will. I am not sure it affected us at all, they still came at us pretty hard. It is part of growth, and we are still in that process.

Yes, pretty much (the focus shifts to Vancouver). It’s draining. It’s draining for everybody, players, coaching staff. We’ll start working on Vancouver tonight, we don’t have many days. It will be interesting. We will enter a series, maybe this one as well, as the underdog. That hasn’t happened before. So maybe there will be a little pressure taken off us there and we can go play free.

(Devin Setoguchi) has found a way to score some timely goals. You look at this series. He had a winner in overtime, he had an important goal tonight on the power play. He is an important player to our club. When you look back at our year, and maybe the transformation from the first half to the second half. You have to put 16’s number up there. He had a much better second half. He was much more committed to his game, and he came a long way. We are starting to see some of that in the playoffs as well.

I think (Vancouver) is a more physical team. They grind a little more. I don’t want to say grind because Detroit grinds with the best of them. They are more about running over you and then getting the puck. When you get to this stage, the goaltenders are all elite. Obviously Luongo has really found his game. They have depth on their team, four lines they feel comfortable that they can continue to roll. They also have a lot of confidence. Every one of the four teams in the final four have had to play a 7-game series. Anybody coming through that has got to feel pretty good about their game. They have all experienced it.

You never want to say it as a coach (an early lead is important), because if it doesn’t happen you can’t always recover from it. I thought the first goal was important, it kept the fans in it. Then perhaps the biggest goal was the Logan Couture steal at the end of the period to get us to that 2 level and make us feel good.

(Do the Sharks have an us against the world mentality?) I am not sure that existed maybe until tonight. The message that was delivered to our players yesterday, maybe a few tweaks as far as hockey goes. There was two stories, I mentioned this to a lot of you already. There was already two stories a lot of you had written, it was up to us which one was going to be sent off. We wanted players to play to the positive one. We couldn’t have that baggage of thinking about the negative. I think a lot of people watched this game, and sometimes you hope for the comeback, the casual fan would like to see the comeback. We were aware of it. I thought we did a good job of eliminating that from our minds.

Post-series comments by Detroit Red Wings head coach Mike Babcock:

It was a good game, I thought they skated better in the first than we did. I looked up and 10 minutes had gone by. I thought we did a good job. We gave up the power play goal. I thought they took over for the rest of the first. I thought we pushed the issue for the rest of the game at least. Their goaltender was outstanding. We had 40 shots on net, they blocked another 25. We missed the net, it says 11 times. We had a lot of rubber going that way. Their goalie did a good job, you have to give them credit. They are a good team. I thought the series was a good series. It was entertaining, it was fast, it was hard for any team to leave the other team. It was just one of those series, it was a good series.

We lost (Bertuzzi) real early. When did we lose Cleary, was it in the second? We would have liked to have had some minutes out of those guys, but that is hockey. Bert only played 3 minutes tonight, Cleary only played 10. You miss those guys but it was an opportunity for other guys to step up. I thought our guys did a real good job filling in and playing hard, competing hard. I thought we were on the puck. I am proud of our group, our group worked real hard.

(Jimmy Howard) did a good job. I thought the goaltending in the whole series was excellent, both goalies were real good, giving their team’s an opportunity. That is what you need at playoff time, an opportunity. Good for them.

Any way you look at it your are disappointed here. What I am pleased with, I am pleased with the effort, I am pleased with the growth of our young players, our high end forwards in Datsyuk and Zetterberg were fantastic in this series which I think is really important. They showed great leadership quality which is fantastic. We still feel we have a real young core, and an opportunity to get better. As we continue to change our organization to try to be current, we need these guys to be great. You are disappointed tonight for sure. You thought in your heart and in your mind you were moving on and having an opportunity at Vancouver. I really thought the team coming out of this series was going to have a real shot at winning. You get very few chances to win, you want make good on your opportunities.

(Pavel Datsyuk) is good. He is committed. I think he is the best 2-way player in the game for sure. Zetterberg is no slouch either. We are real fortunate we have a great 1-2 punch, or both together. They have a great drive in them. They really compete at the highest level, and they make the people around them better. They are great players.

(Special teams) didn’t get ‘er done for us, they scored one more power play goal in the series than we did. I think they got 5 and we got 4. Tonight it was enough to win the game. Any way you look at it, they won the special teams battle. We had some opportunities but not good enough, and we had opportunities down the stretch and we didn’t get it done.

(Patrick Marleau) is a real good player. I think he skates hard, he competes hard, and he is honest. It is easy sometimes to criticize Patrick Marleau because Patrick Marleau doesn’t say anything. His play, I don’t think there is one team in the league that wouldn’t want to have him. I know when he played for me in the Olympics, he was fantastic. He played both ways and was an honest player. He is a good man. Obviously, he is a big part of the reason they are moving on.

Obviously Nick (Lidstrom) hasn’t told me what he is going to do. He will get at me when he decides probably. Hopefully I will be hearing good news that he would like to return. I don’t know the answer to that question. I am sure he will take some time to figure that out. As far as Pavel goes, he had a sore wrist and couldn’t take faceoffs.

I think (Lidstrom has a lot left to give Detroit). He is a family guy. He has got kids, a wife. I imagine he will make that decision. Right now, talking about this stuff. I guess you have to do it because the year’s over but we haven’t had any time to think about this stuff. I couldn’t tell you much.

Obviously it was a good series, good teams. Good tempo. I thought their goaltending tonight was fantastic. It was just one of those series, hard to lose the other team. I thought when we were down 2-0, I kept saying to our guys all you have to do is stay with it. We will get one here. I thought we were in the drivers seat to tell you the truth because we were coming after them. We gave up that third goal, but we scored right away. We still had lots of opportunities. They didn’t go in.

How do you ever know (how close Franzen was to playing). All I know is that he wasn’t good enough to play.

I don’t buy any of that stuff (coming back from 3-0 in series). To me, obviously if you look at it, coming back from 3-0 is a huge, huge thing to overcome. We were unable to do it. If you take the approach that we have a game today, and we have to win it, I don’t think it is as big a deal. Our guys came here, we fully expected to go to Vancouver without any question. In the end, their the team that are going to go. That part is disappointing. I don’t think we left anything out there. I thought our guys played as hard as they could. The only time you look at tonight, I don’t want to make any excuses, but without (Cleary), without (Bertuzzi), without (Franzen), that is a chunk of a team right there. I thought our kids hung in there, we battled. I thought we had the better of the play.

Zetterberg got better. Z is a great player during the year, but he is a better playoff performer. It just seems to get the most out of him. Obviously he was injured, that is the way life is. You can’t control those things. I thought he really got skating as the series went on, no question about it. That’s life.

WCSF Game 5: Sharks let another opportunity slip away, Red Wings score three unanswered goals in third to send series back to Detroit

#8 JOE PAVELSKI TIPS SHOT PASSED #35 JIMMY HOWARD FOR GOAL IN 2ND

#51 VALTTERI FILPPULA WINS FACEOFF AGAINST #21 SCOTT NICHOL IN 3RD

SHARKS CRASHED NET AND #35 JIMMY HOWARD REPEATEDLY IN 1ST

San Jose dominated 41 minutes of game 5, but the Red Wings slowed down the pace of the game and watched along with everyone else as future Hall-of- Famer Pavel Datsyuk took over. Jonathan Ericsson, Dan Cleary and Tomas Holmstrom scored unanswered goals in the third period on hostile ice to overcome a 3-1 deficit and send the series back to Michigan with a 4-3 win in regulation.

“We weren’t giving up at all,” defenseman Nicklas Lidstrom said after the game. “There is a lot of character on our team, there is never any quit,” goaltender Jimmmy Howard added. “Our season was on the line in the third period, and we found a way.”

The comeback was neccessitated after Devin Setoguchi and Joe Pavelski gave the Sharks an early two goal lead to work with. After two unsuccessful power plays, San Jose would finish 0-for-4 on the night, a clean faceoff win by Joe Thornton on Valtteri Filppula set up the opening goal of the game late in the first period. Thornton drew the puck back to Dan Boyle, who backed into a shooting lane at the point and let off a high shot. A moving Devin Setoguchi got his stick on the puck, and deflected it down under goaltender Jimmy Howard. Following a hat trick in game 3 and an overtime game winner against Los Angeles, Setoguchi has 5 goals in 11 playoff contests.

Goaltender Antti Niemi made a spectacular side-to-side extended glove save on Jonathan Ericsson to keep Detroit off the board in the first period, and Jimmy Howard answered with stellar play of his own in the second. Howard stoned a pair of point blank whacks by Dan Boyle, then got his body in front of a backhand rebound attempt by Joe Pavelski. On a subsequent Sharks penalty, Howard helt tight on another pair of point blank chances by Boyle.

A laser of a breakout pass by Kyle Wellwood set up a Sharks rush late in the second. From his own zone, Wellwood banked a pass by two Red Wings onto the stick of Ryane Clowe. Clowe broke with Pavelski for a 2-on-1, and feathered a short saucer pass onto the blade of his stick. Hard on his brakes, Pavelski lunged for the puck and punched it over the top of Howard for a 2-0 lead.

53 seconds later Pavel Datsyuk skated with the puck on his stick like a string, holding on to it long enough for defenseman Niklas Kronwall to skate in for a blindside 1-timer. Datsyuk set the table, and Kronwall buried it to cut the lead to 2-1. After rookie Logan Couture scored 54 seconds into the third period, the Sharks took another penalty again killing any effort to sustain momentum. Dany Heatley took a 2-minute high sticking minor. Detroit was unsuccessful with the man advantage, but before San Jose could reset even strength Pavel Datsyuk carried the puck into the offensive zone and behind the net. He found Henrik Zetterberg, but a quick shot deflected off Heatley to an open Jonathan Ericsson far side. Ericsson deposited it into the empty net to cut the lead to 3-2.

Less than two minutes later, Dan Cleary would score the equalizer on a broken play at the side of the net. Instead of taking his many out of the play, Devin Setoguchi tried to seal the post on a Cleary wraparound. The first shot was blocked but not frozen, and Cleary punched home the unprotected puck off Setoguchi’s foot to tie the game.

The crowd inside HP Pavilion tried to rally the home team, but Detroit kept coming at San Jose in waves. Pavel Datsyuk created a turnover by Patrick Marleau along the wall, then held possession as Marleau tried to check him off the puck. Almost operating in slow motion, Datsyuk saw an aggressive backcheck with all 5 Sharks down low and found an open Niklas Lidstrom at the point. With time, Lidstrom loaded up on a 1-timer that was deflected passed Niemi by Holmstrom in front. After an extended battle for position in front, Sharks defenseman Niclas Wallin was unable to take his stick out on the play.

“I think you put yourselves in a very dangerous position if you start getting back on your heels against that team, but I don’t think that was the case tonight,” San Jose Sharks head coach Todd McLellan said after the game. “We gave up six shots in the third period, and three of them went in.” San Jose goaltender Antti Niemi finished with 18 saves on 22 shots, Detroit goaltender Jimmy Howard stopped 39 of 42 shots against.

A photo gallery from the game is available here.

Move to new server completed

Sharkspage’s move to a new server was completed last night. Files were moved from one server to another without any problems, but a database that allowed for blog posting was corrupted in the move. Thanks to longtime friend of the blog J.B. for helping to get everything back up and running. An archive item and photo gallery will be posted before getting back up to speed with game 7.

Thanks for hanging in there with the blog.

DOH Podcast #148: Reaction to Sharks loss to Detroit in Game 5, Patrick Marleau controversy, Datsyuk and Zetterberg reunited, struggling power play, predictions for game 6 in Detroit

[audio:http://dudesonhockey.com/podcast/doh_2011_0508.mp3]

Mike Peattie and Doug Santana discuss their intense reaction to Detroit’s come-from-behind win in game 5, the silent atmosphere in the tank for the third period, Mike Babcock’s decision to reunite Pavel Datsyuk and Henrik Zetterberg, whether the Sharks as playoff choker meme has been reignited, E.J. Hradek, Jeremy Roenick and Adrian Dater’s criticism of Patrick Marleau, the Sharks 0-for-4 performance on the power play, and predict how the Sharks will fare for game 6 in Detroit on the on the 148th episode of the Dudes on Hockey podcast.

This Sharks podcast is posted here with permission. Visit dudesonhockey.com for more coverage of the team or download the MP3 file directly here.

WCSF Game 3: Post-game comments by San Jose Sharks head coach Todd McLellan, Detroit Red Wings head coach Mike Babcock

Post-game comments by San Jose Sharks head coach Todd McLellan:

We are just trying to win games. There is no talk, or any thought about (tying Montreal’s record for playoff overtime victories). Again, the teams are so evenly matched. It is a bounce, a break, a save here or there that went our way tonight. The game itself was the tightest game yet. I didn’t think we skated particularly well. I didn’t think we had enough guys going. For us to continue on, we need to have more guys.

All year, especially early in the year when we weren’t winning we were concerned not so much about special teams, power play penalty kill, but a lot about our 5-on-5 play on both sides of the puck. When you look at the game tonight, power plas played even. It was important for us to try to match their 5-on-5 play. We stuck with it in the third period. It is hard to hold a lead right now, there are so much tension and stress out on the ice. We just kept getting pucks to the net and one went in for us. In overtime I am not sure we were the better team. They had a number of chances, goaltender made some good saves. We were opportunistic when we finally did get that chance.

Please don’t (bring up the Detroit 7-1 win in game 4 last year). We have tried very hard as a coaching staff to eliminate and seperate last year’s series from this year’s. I think I have referenced that a number of times about the different lineups and all of the circumstances that come into play. There will be a lot made out of the same date, overtime, all that type of stuff. It is completely irrelevant in my opinion. I hope it is because we took one hell of a licking in game 4 last year.

There is no doubt they had better scoring opportunities in the overtime period. It is as simple as that. Our goaltender had to make a couple of tremendous saves. They put themselves on the power play. We took a holding penalty that wasn’t very good, it was Seto’s second one of the night. Here we are talking about a player scored the winning goal and had a hat trick, yet coach isn’t very happy at a couple of his penalties. We have to take the good and the bad together. They were a better team in the third period. We needed that one opportunity, and I am glad we ended it when we did.

I just had a quick chance to look at it on the way in (Setoguchi’s second holding penalty in OT on Bertuzzi). I thought it was a lot like last night’s Nashville Vancouver where two guys were tied up, it could have gone either way. The officials did a very good job tonight. They didn’t have an impact on the game one way or another. We have got to move on.

Very big. You need heroes. You need people to step up, Seto was ours tonight. I kind of whacked him earlier talking about his penalties, and we will have to deal with that. He has got a tremendous trigger. He puts himself in situations where he can shoot the puck. He has got a couple of good players playing with him. When they split their line up with Datsyuk and Zetterberg, we had hoped we would have gotten a little more space for Jumbo, Patty and Seto. I am not sure that we did, but we earned a goal.

(Winning game 4) is obviously going to be our goal. CLiches, the last one is the toughest one, whatever you want. It will be as hard on us as we make it. Again tonight, we didn’t have a lot of polish, we didn’t have enough players in my opinion to play. We got away with one. We will have to be better. They have proven to us that they are not going away. They did it last year, and they sent a very stern message to us in game 4. We have to be much better than we were a year ago. We will try to approach the game a little differently, and try to prepare a little better.

We had won two games at home. We liked the way we played. I told you the (line matchups) weren’t going to make that much of a difference. It was going to be settled with the 18 skaters and 2 goaltenders. I think by us not going there immediately is a reflection of how much we believe in Logan Couture. He has to line up against Pavel Datsyuk. That is not an easy job. We have a ton of confidence there. We felt, we hoped that we could get a littl more space without having Pav and Hank out against Jumbo’s line. I guess when it was all said and done, we needed that last shot and we found it.

(Heatley) is fine. He came back. It was a hell of a hit. It took a lot of courage to pick himself up and get off the ice. He came back and played admirably.

Post-game comments by Detroit Red Wings head coach Mike Babcock:

It is a tough pill to swallow, especially when you are down 2-0 already. Obviously it was a game we could have found a way to win tonight. We had every opportunity even into overtime. I thought we made a mistake on their tying goal. D-zone coverage-wise where Boyle slid in, it was unfortunate. Our power play was good tonight too, but you always like to have a couple more stops on the penalty kill. It is just one of those things. We gave up chances on the power play and so did they. Obviously disappointed for us, we got to take tomorrow and get regrouped. We have to win a game.

They are finding a way, that is what good teams do. When you win a series, and four 1-goal games, you don’t think it’s that tight. You just find a way to win.

I don’t know what we were (on the power play), 2-for-4, or something like that, 2-for-5. It was a good opportunity for us (in overtime). I thought Pavel had a great opportunity right away in overtime as well. We had some good opportunities. We played in their zone for a lot of the overtime, and we didn’t score.

I thought we were on our heels a little bit (in the third period). Also on the power play for sure. Like I said to you on the tying goal, I thought that was a poor play by us. Then I thought for the next few shifts. Tonight I thought really was a pretty good hockey game for our team. For both the second period, which we had dominated, and the fourth period, we tilt the rink pretty good. We had lots of opportunity.

I thought our forwards were good. The question asked already, I thought the third period we were a little careful. Pretty good hockey game. Most nights if you play like that you are going to find a way to win. We didn’t find a way to shoot it into the net. On a line change there, Z is coming back in. He puts his stick down. Setoguchi passes off his stick, or it hits his stick, and goes in the net. It is just the way it went.

I don’t know (why Setoguchi was so successful), he just shot it. I thought on the power play, on the one goal he actually, I think he might have fanned on the shot actually. It went in. He just shoots the puck. I thought Thornton was real good today. They scored one even strength goal both on the power play otherwise. He shoots the puck. That is what shooters do.

To me I am going to spend no time worrying about the series. I am going to spend our time getting prepared for one game. And then after we win that, I will get prepared for the next game. It is way easier going about doing it like that. It has been done 3 times in the NHL history, and it was done last year by Philly. It is not easy. There is no question about it. But I think what we got to do, everybody is feeling bad tonight there is no question about it. We will get up tomorrow, get regrouped, and get right back at ‘er.

Versus/TSN national television numbers for Sharks first round series against LA, NBC’s matinee broadcast of WCSF game 2 a hit in San Jose and Detroit

A partial list of Versus (U.S.) and TSN (Canada) national broadcast numbers for the Sharks first round WCQF playoff series against Los Angeles:

Versus 2011 SJ-LA WCQF:

Game 1, Thu 4/14: 381,000
Game 2, Tue 4/16: 457,000
Game 3, Thu 4/29: 300,000
Game 4, Sat 4/21: 316,000 (JIP)
Game 5, Sat 4/23: 455,000
Game 6, Mon 4/25: 446,000

TSN 2011 SJ-LA WCQF:

Game 1, Thu 4/14: 665,000
Game 3, Tue 4/19: 404,000 (JIP)
Game 4, Thu 4/21: 199,000
Game 5, Sat 4/23: 447,000

Versus and NBC started off the 2011 Stanley Cup Playoffs with impressive numbers according to Sports Media Watch. Shortly after signing a 10-year contract extension, NBC earned the largest first round playoff broadcast audience in 7 years. Averaging 1.9 million viewers, NBC saw a 12% gain over the first round of the playoffs last season (1.7M), and a 27% gain over the first round in 2009 (1.5M). Regular season numbers were up as well. NBC averaged a 1.0 over 10 regular season broadcasts, up from a 0.9 over 9 regular season broadcasts a year earlier.

Despite being blacked out in local markets for a number of games, Versus experienced a similar growth. Versus, which may be renamed and rebranded as the NBC Sports Channel this summer, saw the highest first round ratings for cable in 8 years averaging 624,000 viewers. The Chicago Blackhawks forcing a series finale in game 6 drew 1.16M viewers for Versus, the biggest first round audience in 8 years.

NBC’s matinee broadcast of the San Jose Sharks vs Detroit Red Wings semifinal game 2 on Sunday was flat nationally. It registered a 1.6 overnight, similar to last year’s Montreal-Pittsburgh game 2 according to Austin Karp. Locally, game 2 drew a 14.0/27 in the Detroit market, and a 4.3/14 in the Bay Area market (San Francisco, Oakland, San Jose) according to Steve Lepore. “A game featuring a team from California out-drawing Philly-Boston and up against highly-rated NBA programming on ABC? Put a feather in the cap for the folks who think NBC needs to expand their choice of teams next season,” Lepore said. Versus drew a 1.4HH and 1.6HH rating for the first two games of the SJ-DET WCSF last year, 1.45 million and 1.77 million viewers respectively. At the time, it was the most watched semifinal game on cable in 10 years.

TSN numbers for game 2 and 6 are unavailable. Comcast Sportsnet California has not released first round ratings yet, Fox Sports West noted via email that they do not release local playoff ratings.

[Update] According to Steve Lepore, game 1 of the Sharks-Wings WCSF series drew 724,000 viewers on Versus while blacked out in the San Jose and Detroit markets.

DOH Podcast #147: strong start to the series, how evenly matched San Jose Sharks and Detroit Red Wings are, snowshowers

[audio:http://dudesonhockey.com/podcast/doh_2011_0503.mp3]

Mike Peattie and Doug Santana discuss the San Jose Sharks strong start to their WCSF series, the return trip to Detroit for games 3 and 4, how even the matchup is, Lidstrom’s hit post at the end of game 2, adjustments that Detroit might make, whether or not San Jose sticks to a gameplan that has worked, snowshowers, and take a look at the other playoff series among other topics on the 147th episode of the Dudes on Hockey podcast.

This Sharks podcast is posted here with permission. Visit dudesonhockey.com for more coverage of the team or download the MP3 file directly here.