While the Jackets have been boasting a tremendous 7-3-0 record over their last ten games, it does not really provide a good explanation of how they got there. The game against the Chicago Blackhawks last night is fairly indicative of their windy road.
It kind of read like this, and I am bulleting only because of the randomness…
- Quick weak goal on Mason..
- Line 1a gets a great tip to tie..
- Crazy ricochet off the boards from a Methot point shot buried by Dorsett for the 2-1 lead..
- Blown coverage leads to a nice goal by Kane..
- Period ends.
- Hedja falls asleep while Toews capitalizes for the 3-2 lead..
- Nash scores on a lazy wrister that beats a lazier Huet…
- Period ends.
- Refs fail miserably calling Boll for getting tripped by a stick..
- Refs fail miserably to the point of 15,000 people booing every time the powerplay (aka Chicago) touches the puck..
- Klesla gets called for being physical..
- Period ends.
- ANTOINE VERMETTE SHINES!!!!!!!
Now, I can not really say I sat throughout the game quietly appreciating the lackluster effort by the officials, and I chose a few words that got a snicker from the small peanut gallery that happened to be in the vicinity. What I saw tonight though, was resilience that was deeply rooted in an entire fan bases distaste for what they saw being done to their hometown team.
Moving past that, the Jackets were able to score ugly goals (which is a rarity) and they finished the game with a heads up 2 on 1 that was completed by Vermette, who some are calling the savior of the Jackets. I like to call him my diamond in the rough.
Three very quick points… The Jackets outhit the Hawks 28-18. They also outshot them, but only by one. Finally, the ‘power line’ of Nash-Malhotra-Huselius were the only Jackets in the negative in terms of +/-….. Makes you wonder why there is no discussion about splitting that pairing up and letting some of the younger guys get a crack at playing with Nash.
Oh, and did I mention the Jackets now have the same number of wins as the Hawks? And also that they only sit 4 points back? Hitting the 80 point mark ties a franchise record and there are still 11 games remaining on the schedule.
Carry the Flag!
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