Boston Game Two, Musings and In-Game Scribbles

Montreal 1 at Boston 5
Game Two

Sergei Kostitsyn and Francis Bouillon are both back. Montreal will win the intensity and urgency aspects of this game. And by several lengths.

Bouillon’s return is more important than even the return of Lang could be. At least in the short run. Bouillon will immediately bring some poise to own-zone play.

Mike Leggo and Tim Peel are the referees.

First Period

Koivu wins the draw. He’s on with Laraque and Kovalev.

Montreal is playing with early poise. Boston seems to be hesitant, waiting and again, still nervous.

Crowd starts chanting Carey’s name. If Carey is anything like Reggie, this will fire him up.

Boston wins a deep faceoff and they produce a shot from Bergeron that sails high and wide.

Montreal is looking smooth. Sergei Kostitsyn is on with his brother. And Sergei gets an early hit and then a stick on a puck to deflect a Bruin pass.

Bruins come down.

Bouillon wants to go with Lucic but Lucic chickens out. Not so brave now. Lucic is the kind of guy who yells a lot of stuff when he’s driving away in his car. But is real quiet when in the group.

Komisarek falls in playing a puck and the crowd roars. Like the roar a circus clown gets when falling. Komisarek is unpopular with recent events.

They let Laraque turn and shoot. Harmless.

Komisarek gets a long shot in on Thomas.

Fluke bounce and Tanguay is in alone. Can’t get it in control quickly enough. Thomas smothers. Lies on it like an ill grandmother on his side.

Higgins and Tanguay with Metropolit and a delving Gorges. Canadiens are in charge of TOP (time of possession). What’s wrong with Boston?

Yelle gets a hit on Gorges.

They’re split-shifting Kovalev. Andrei takes a hard hit. Kovalev is on with the Kostitsyn brothers. I like it.

Kessel sails out in front amongst three white jerseys and gets a direct shot on Price. Price moves out and blocks it squarely.

The pace is slower than at the same time in the first period last game (Game One).

Kovalev is knocked off-kilter by Bergeron at mid-ice and the Bruins come in. Price is up to the task.

Montreal is looking and passing. Heads-up hockey. Boston seems more nervous than last game.

Sergei gets a strong shot. Then he gets into the slot for a feed from Kovalev and gets another one. Thomas has this one. But doesn’t know where it is. Whistle goes. It’s stuck in his pad.

Sergei takes a Sergei Kostitsyn type of penalty. Hook in the neutral zone. Little brother shakes his head. It’s a fair call, though.

Penalty-kill. Metropolit and Higgins are on first.

Boston can’t set up in the first thirty. Price is in his malevolent crab. All confidence and peering. Good positioning and no lazy movement.

Kobasew then gets it in front and wrists it in. End of the confidence?

1-0, Boston.

Lapierre line is on right after the goal. Latendresse and Kostopoulos are on with him. Normal alignment.

Boston should be feeling more relaxed but they are not playing like it. I wouldn’t let my players read during the playoffs. Nor speak to anyone. I’d get them bonuses for the seclusion.

Bergeron seems on his game for the Bs. Hitting and slowing the game down to look for open wingers. He’s very hard to intimidate.

Metro Line controls deep for a time. Canadiens are being allowed to skate with the puck. Yelle is one of the Bruins who is definitely not playing nervous.

Higgins works hard for six seconds then gives up where the second and third efforts are needed. All in our zone. And it results on a shot on Price. Save. This time.

Lapierre is centering the brothers now. With six minutes left, Montreal leads 10-7 in shots on goal. Quality chances favour Boston, though.

Koivu still has a lot of speed. He has to mete it out carefully.

Now Price goes too far right and has to lunge left to grab a high shot with his glove. He gets it. Barely. Faceoff to come but first more TV propaganda from the oil industry; buy a planet-polluting vehicle and outdo your capitalistic neighbours in a crass showing of materialism.

We return to the game.

Koivu loses the faceoff. Hamrlik recovers the puck behind the Montreal net. Boston regains control. Good puck movement from Boston results in a shot or two and the rebound is netted by Kobasew.

2-0, Boston.

Montreal is the better team and it is clear. But there is more to this series than matchups. Higgins shows us one of those additional factors; takes a penalty. Montreal is losing the power-play battle. Two for Boston. One for Red.

Tanguay and Metropolit are on the PK first. First time Tanguay has been on the ‘kill in months. Maybe ever in 08-09.

Koivu is on with Lapierre next. Looking for additional opportunities to score.

Montreal keeps their rectangular integrity and fires it out three different times. That brings it under one minute. Price is beaten on a cross-ice pass. But the shot is nowhere near the net.

Kostopoulos is on with Metropolit (second appearance on this kill)

Puck goes out front and Price makes a hell of a glove save. He sits there momentarily and considers regaining his confidence.

Just over two minutes left in the first. First line is back on. Price gloves it and gets it to Schneider. It goes up to Lapierre. Shot is gloved.

Kostopoulos. Scuffle. He gets punched by Kessel. Kosto punched him first. Thomas glides backward butt first to protect and separate. It’s comical. It works. But Kosto finds Lucic instead. On the glass behind the net.

Refs protect Lucic from a sure beating. Kostopolous. Lapierre ties up Chara. Then he goes back after him. Chara is not interested. Boston behind-the-glass prisoners are yelling for violence.

We return to the action.

Schneider gets called for nothing. Bergeron goes into the box for acting. Julien’s suit looks a bit broad for him. Odd.

It’s four-on-four.

Koivu wins the faceoff. Deep.

Puck goes the other way. Price makes a light save and the Boston crowd jeers him. Nine seconds. Looked like he had problems with it. Chara gets a shot off the next faceoff. Save by Price.

Chara gets another shot to end the period. Wide. Looked like it could have gone in if on target.

They both make it off the ice with a minimum. Koivu versus Krejci briefly. Stick to stick like Friar Tuck. Or maybe it was Kessel.

First Intermission

Frustration is noted and warned against.

Second Period

Still four-on-four for about twenty seconds. Gorges falls as if pushed by an ethereal Frank Brimsek. Results in a toe-save from Price. Again going the wrong way.

Kovalev.

2-1, Boston.

Wrister. What a nice, precise shot. With a hesitation. Coffee. Cream. The bill, please.

Canadiens live with hope. The “A” is for artist. No! The “A” is for Assassin.

Metropolit has a very deliberate stick-handling style. Weber is taking care of traffic well.

Ligne Internationale is on the ice together again. Temporary union from a late change? Or a permanent reunion. Animal Magnetism blares from the arena speakers. The Zoo.

Kovalev is double-shifting now. With Lapierre and Laraque. White rose in the tuxedo for the Russian.

Montreal gets lucky with a non-call. Now Higgins is in and just misses the far post.

Great rejoinder from Schneider to harry Ryder who was in alone. Is Plekanec a healthy scratch?

Canadiens are pushing Bruins off the puck.

Bruins come and Hnidy gets a goal he shouldn’t have. Didn’t earn it. RJ Umberger.

!@(($_##.

3-1, Boston.

How irritating. Unearned privilege. Or its on-ice equivalent.

Kovalev creates two quality shots one after the other. Flick, flick. Thomas is just lucky. Kovalev shifted and styled circles like Lafleur on that end-to-end rush.

Metropolit line is on. Tanguay has a pass intercepted. Metropolit takes a penalty on the return rush. His handle-bar mustache and querulous eyes make him resemble Michael Ryder. Don’t ask me how.

Ryder misses a certain goal. Komisarek lifts the puck from the moment. Gets it out. Back in it goes. One player on the point for Boston. Now back to two. They move it around. Chara moves up again. Savard gets the goal.

4-1, Boston.

Price was moving left to right and right to left throughout with speed and ease. Like they tell goalies to in the books. Push off.

Eleven minutes. Montreal puts more pressure. Kovalev is on with Koivu. And Laraque. Montreal wants this so badly. Shot after shot after pass after body-on and cheap thunder in the Boston corners. But no goals and only one quality shot.

Latendresse and Lapierre continue it. It looks like a power-play. And Boston lets it happen. Montreal controls. Finally Boston gets it out. But not for long. Thomas gets the Bruins a small break and a commercial. Freezes on a mid-range shot.

Andrei and Sergei are on with Kovalev. Puckless, Kovalev has the purpose of a separated mother puma. AK46 delivers a hit, son.

Montreal has control as usual. If we did the McCown thing and removed the scoreboard and the goals, a replay of this game would indicate a Montreal win at best, a tie, at worst.

Tanguay finds Kovalev but he can’t get a good shot off. Kovalev is on with Koivu and Tanguay, now.

In between Price makes a save he didn’t think he would make. Good one. On his knees, sliding out. Eyes closed, I imagine.

Lapierre never gives up. He has a streak of aluminum foil in him. If Chara picked him up and bit him in half, he’d have to spit out some sliver. Maxim works the boards. Tries an around the net backhand.

Boston is completely out of sorts. How can they be leading? This game. This game, hockey. So unfair.

Or maybe not. Tanguay takes a penalty and reminds me why the scoreboard is so unforgiving. We can’t stay out of the box.

Metropolit is on the first pairing. With Higgins. They kill the first minute of it. Now Koivu and Kovalev are on. (We really miss Markov despite all the excellent work). And they continue by clearing. No shots by Boston. Yet.

Thirty seconds left.

Higgins and Metropolit are back. Gainey is just going with the best he has available to him. Clocking it. Clocking it. And again. Le tous pour le tous.

Tanguay sneaks it to Lapierre at the circles but Thomas stops the quick, blunt shot.

Montreal controls again. Boston is just waiting and watching. Their five-on-five is pathetic. But with a three-goal lead, it won’t hurt them.

Tanguay gets to circle almost all the way around the Boston zone. Montreal gets a penalty. Again.

Fifth penalty. Hooking. Kovalev. Just call.

Distance shot is stopped by Price. Just over a minute left in the period.

Boston looks much better on this power-play. Higgins and Metropolit again. Ryder comes in and scores with just under five seconds left. Snapshot. (Yes, it’s good to see him score. No it’s not. Yes it is. No it’s not.)

5-1, Boston. Halak? Probably not.

Gainey looks hurt and saddened. Boston crowd cheers Carey’s name. He waves. Not a fair game. How to get back?

In Bob We Trust.

Second Intermission

They interview Patrice Bergeron.

Third Period

Halak it is. Wrong again.

All Boston has to do is play an average period. Their average.

Halak makes a great opening save. Great set-up from Savard and Kessel. Sure goal is taken away. That’s coming in cold. Cold.

Metropolit line comes on. Higgins with some good work on the Boston end boards. Broon fans do the ole, ole. It sounds off. Accents.

Koivu backchecks and ties up a trailing Bruin to break up a scoring chance.

Boston waits inside the centre line for the action. It keeps working. Gorges gives up the puck. Halak makes the save.

Halak gives it away behind the net. No danger results.

Canadiens keep working. Another giveaway by Halak and he has to make a great save in front.

Schneider makes up for a put-me-in danger pass from Halak. Puck moves back down to the Boston end. But not much.

Montreal can’t get anything going. Boston doesn’t need to.

Gorges versus Bergeron. Gorges is really tagged. What a ranting waste of time fighting is.

Tangos lead to four-on-four. Koivu and Kovalev are the first pairing. Not much. Late in the eight, Lucic finds his way to the middle and blasts a slapshot at Halak only seven feet in front of him. Solid stop.

Boston crowd is singing na-na-na-na … at least Boston fans understand sports. Unlike some unnamed other fans. Ok, I’ll name them. Look for the article; I’ll call it “The ten worst sports fans in the country”.

Montreal is making even strength look like a power-play again. There is a lot to feel good about in this game. But the team has to stop committing infractions.

Just under six minutes left.

Kovalev drives right down the middle and gives Thomas a tough shot. Save. And freeze. Kovalev came down alone. From centre ice. He is something tonight.

Metropolit and Higgins are on now. Pace picks up. Both teams. Messages for game three. Tanguay scores after the whistle. Jams away. Shakes his head as he skates back to the bench. Higgins knocked Thomas into the net on the sequence. But he was knocked over by a Bruin, replay shows.

I thought Montreal was going to win games two and three and lose the rest of the games. But now. Well. Hmm. Sweep?

Lucic crosschecks Lapierre’s head. Lucic is getting a real attitude. He is making gestures safe in the referee’s arms. He has a lot of nerve. Lucic could have killed Komisarek the other night (in the regular season) and now he could have put Lapierre in a coma. What a league. What a sport.

Wow. Lapierre didn’t even see it.

Julien has that look on his face again. When he knows one of his guys has messed up.

Brunet and Houde are highly unimpressed. Lucic gets a game misconduct. Brunet says it should be a one-game suspension and that he is very interested in what Colin Campbell will say.

On the replay, it doesn’t look like a coma-inducing hit, after all. Just a rude, inappropriate gesture. That replay was in slow motion, though. Harder to tell.

Hey, I never promised constant objectivity. Just a healthy leaning toward that.

Montreal gets a five-minute power-play. About four minutes left. Kovalev gets an open-net chance. Tries for the blast but doesn’t tee it up right.

Montreal can’t get it over the line in a way conducive to control. Weber shows some additional moves and fluidity that I didn’t know about.

Just under a minute. Kovalev is still creating. Dandenault is on for this power-play. At the close Kovalev is stopped by Thomas on the doorstep.

Boston leads series 2-0

HDS Stars: Marc Savard, Alex Kovalev, Michael Ryder,
RDS Stars: Marc Savard, Michael Ryder, Chuck Kobasew

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