Edmonton at Anaheim: Game 5.
Saturday, May 27, 2006
Got the TV on, OLN tuned in, and Beninati and Smith yammering away for the commentary. Now is a better time than ever to give it a go with some live blogging during the game.
Period One:
13:57 remaining: The Ducks are down 3-2 in the shot count with about 15 minutes to go in the 1st period. Though down a shot, it looks like the Ducks are really pushing to set the early pace. Edmonton is looking up to the task at most turns though, and held them off the board during a decent Power Play attempt.
The one thing I noticed right away is the fact that the fans at the Pond are, as was probably expected, nowhere near as enthusiastic as the fans at Rexall. I think part of this can be blamed on the fact that the sound of the crowd just sounds pretty muffled. But even factoring that, you can tell that they probably can't match the energy from two nights ago (and then also four nights ago).
I'm pulling for the Ducks just because I have a close friend who is absolutely nutty for them. She'd probably maul me if she saw that I was cheering at all for the Oilers.
12:30 remaining: What a nice screen shot by Beauchemin! There had to be around four guys right in front of Roloson, and who knows if it got deflected by any of the bodies. Ducks are now up 1-0 on a power play goal, and that is good for them. Neil Smith mentioned that the team that scored first has won every game in the series so far. I wonder what their record with the first goal is during their playoff run as a whole.
6:45 remaining: Great save by Giguere, and without his stick no less. As of this moment, Anaheim could very well be up 2-0 or even 3-0 with the way they're clicking right now. It's definitely not going to be another 25 shot first period, but this has been some very strong play by the Ducks. The Oilers seem to be rather thrown around by the ferocity of the Ducks.
End of the first period: That last Duck power play to wrap up the period was pretty bush league. Though they're still coming out of the first period with a 1-0 lead, and 14 shots on net, so they should still be feeling good about having the lead. Time to go make a quick dinner, then get ready for the second period.
Period Two:
16:18 remaining: A rebound goal by Morrow after his own wraparound was denied by Giguere. A minute or two ago Giggy had a great save right in front of the net without a single Duck close enough to stop a rocket at point blank. But even so, now the game is tied 1-1. The Oilers seem to be carrying the play this early part of the second period, and it doesn't look like they're going to pull back now, either.
Incidentally, you can tell just how big of a constituency the Oilers have at the Pond, just from how noticable the cheers for the goal was.
11:29 remaining: And suddenly penalties are beginning to poke a hole in the steam for the Ducks. Another goal for the Oilers, and now Edmonton is up 2-1. This goal came after the penalty had expired, but it may as well have been on the power play, since it was still set up. Let's see if the Ducks can somehow recover from this, and before the end of the period. If they don't pull even by the end of the period, it's going to be an extremely rough third period for them.
End of the second period: With a quick shot from the face-off, the second period ends. The Oilers are still up 2-1, and unless the Ducks want to see their season end tonight, they need to get back the confidence and finesse they had in the first period. That won't be easy either, with Roloson starting to stand strong in the goal. In the Ducks' favor, they'll have about 1:40 left in power play time when the third period starts, so if they can strike quick and tie it up, they can look to go toe for toe with the Oilers in the last 20 minutes.
Period Three:
Writer's Note: It's beyond impossible to focus on writing when you have a bunch of guys above you who sound like they're dropping bowling bowls on the floor for fun all night long. I'd rather sit through an hour of those "Take me fishing" commercials than this.
16:00 remaining: Ducks couldn't capitalize on their short-lived power play, as Penner got a rather interesting goalie interference penalty from a slightly wayward Roloson out of the crease just a bit. Meanwhile, the game is starting to show signs of chaos and a lack of organization, with the teams flying up and down the rink and going tit-for-tat with shots. But Edmonton is holding a slight advantage in the battle, and if the Ducks can't do something about that, this'll be over sooner rather than later.
9:45 remaining: Cutting to commercial break, and the Ducks will be on the power play after the TV timeout. They're starting to get desperate now, and save for some quick speeding back, the Oilers have had a couple semi-odd man rush chances if they moved quicker to take advantage of them. It looks like they're starting to put the grip of death down on the final half a period. The Ducks really need to score here, but that much is obvious.
3:50 remaining: Another TV timeout after a sudden whistle, and I am going to assume that the whistle is for a penalty on the Oilers, or possibly a high stick. If it is a penalty, the question is if they pull Giguere with this amount of time left for a 6-on-4. Or if that is much too risky.
End of regulation: Finally, despite the Mighty Ducks being on as big as a 6-on-3 advantage in the final two minutes for about 30 seconds or so, the Edmonton Oilers are able to win the game and move on to the Stanley Cup Championships. One team is now set for the finals, and we have one series to go
I'll have some thoughts on the Oilers reaching the finals later. For now, I have some classwork I've been putting off all night that needs doing.
Edit: Haha, oh wow. "Mighty Dunks"? That must have been a major subconscious slip on my part. Well, it's fixed now.
Period One:
13:57 remaining: The Ducks are down 3-2 in the shot count with about 15 minutes to go in the 1st period. Though down a shot, it looks like the Ducks are really pushing to set the early pace. Edmonton is looking up to the task at most turns though, and held them off the board during a decent Power Play attempt.
The one thing I noticed right away is the fact that the fans at the Pond are, as was probably expected, nowhere near as enthusiastic as the fans at Rexall. I think part of this can be blamed on the fact that the sound of the crowd just sounds pretty muffled. But even factoring that, you can tell that they probably can't match the energy from two nights ago (and then also four nights ago).
I'm pulling for the Ducks just because I have a close friend who is absolutely nutty for them. She'd probably maul me if she saw that I was cheering at all for the Oilers.
12:30 remaining: What a nice screen shot by Beauchemin! There had to be around four guys right in front of Roloson, and who knows if it got deflected by any of the bodies. Ducks are now up 1-0 on a power play goal, and that is good for them. Neil Smith mentioned that the team that scored first has won every game in the series so far. I wonder what their record with the first goal is during their playoff run as a whole.
6:45 remaining: Great save by Giguere, and without his stick no less. As of this moment, Anaheim could very well be up 2-0 or even 3-0 with the way they're clicking right now. It's definitely not going to be another 25 shot first period, but this has been some very strong play by the Ducks. The Oilers seem to be rather thrown around by the ferocity of the Ducks.
End of the first period: That last Duck power play to wrap up the period was pretty bush league. Though they're still coming out of the first period with a 1-0 lead, and 14 shots on net, so they should still be feeling good about having the lead. Time to go make a quick dinner, then get ready for the second period.
Period Two:
16:18 remaining: A rebound goal by Morrow after his own wraparound was denied by Giguere. A minute or two ago Giggy had a great save right in front of the net without a single Duck close enough to stop a rocket at point blank. But even so, now the game is tied 1-1. The Oilers seem to be carrying the play this early part of the second period, and it doesn't look like they're going to pull back now, either.
Incidentally, you can tell just how big of a constituency the Oilers have at the Pond, just from how noticable the cheers for the goal was.
11:29 remaining: And suddenly penalties are beginning to poke a hole in the steam for the Ducks. Another goal for the Oilers, and now Edmonton is up 2-1. This goal came after the penalty had expired, but it may as well have been on the power play, since it was still set up. Let's see if the Ducks can somehow recover from this, and before the end of the period. If they don't pull even by the end of the period, it's going to be an extremely rough third period for them.
End of the second period: With a quick shot from the face-off, the second period ends. The Oilers are still up 2-1, and unless the Ducks want to see their season end tonight, they need to get back the confidence and finesse they had in the first period. That won't be easy either, with Roloson starting to stand strong in the goal. In the Ducks' favor, they'll have about 1:40 left in power play time when the third period starts, so if they can strike quick and tie it up, they can look to go toe for toe with the Oilers in the last 20 minutes.
Period Three:
Writer's Note: It's beyond impossible to focus on writing when you have a bunch of guys above you who sound like they're dropping bowling bowls on the floor for fun all night long. I'd rather sit through an hour of those "Take me fishing" commercials than this.
16:00 remaining: Ducks couldn't capitalize on their short-lived power play, as Penner got a rather interesting goalie interference penalty from a slightly wayward Roloson out of the crease just a bit. Meanwhile, the game is starting to show signs of chaos and a lack of organization, with the teams flying up and down the rink and going tit-for-tat with shots. But Edmonton is holding a slight advantage in the battle, and if the Ducks can't do something about that, this'll be over sooner rather than later.
9:45 remaining: Cutting to commercial break, and the Ducks will be on the power play after the TV timeout. They're starting to get desperate now, and save for some quick speeding back, the Oilers have had a couple semi-odd man rush chances if they moved quicker to take advantage of them. It looks like they're starting to put the grip of death down on the final half a period. The Ducks really need to score here, but that much is obvious.
3:50 remaining: Another TV timeout after a sudden whistle, and I am going to assume that the whistle is for a penalty on the Oilers, or possibly a high stick. If it is a penalty, the question is if they pull Giguere with this amount of time left for a 6-on-4. Or if that is much too risky.
End of regulation: Finally, despite the Mighty Ducks being on as big as a 6-on-3 advantage in the final two minutes for about 30 seconds or so, the Edmonton Oilers are able to win the game and move on to the Stanley Cup Championships. One team is now set for the finals, and we have one series to go
I'll have some thoughts on the Oilers reaching the finals later. For now, I have some classwork I've been putting off all night that needs doing.
Edit: Haha, oh wow. "Mighty Dunks"? That must have been a major subconscious slip on my part. Well, it's fixed now.
