Manny Legace Pitches Shutout: Hurricanes 4, Thrashers 0
by Bob Wage on Mar 7, 2010 10:45 PM EST
41 comments
The Carolina Hurricanes rebounded from Saturday night's loss in Florida in a big way as they dominated the Atlanta Thrashers on Sunday night, 4-0 at Philips Arena in Atlanta. The Canes got scoring in each period and solid defense throughout the game as Manny Legace commemorated his fifth straight win with a shutout.
It was Carolina's first shutout of the year.
The Canes got balanced scoring as Brandon Sutter, Joni Pitkanen, Jussi Jokinen, and Rod Brind`Amour each lit the lamp.
The opening period was the opposite of the one in Florida as the Canes out-shot the Thrashers 15-4. Brandon Sutter got the scoring started with a powerplay goal with the help of a great pass from Tuomo Ruutu.
The Thrashers turned up the intensity in the second period and put 14 shots of their own on Manny Legace, but the Carolina goalie was up to the task and made several nice saves.
Later on in the period, Jussi Jokinen returned a favor to countryman Joni Pitkanen and found the defenseman skating alone in front of the net. Pitkanen roofed his shot past goalie Ondrej Pavelec. The blueliner had been skating all around the offensive zone and finally found an opening.
Just two minutes and change into the third period, Rod Brind`Amour knocked in his own rebound on a bang-bang play to make the score 3-0. About three minutes later, Jussi Jokinen tipped in a Brian Pothier shot on another powerplay to put the game away.
The Canes will come home for a short respite, then hit the road again for a game in Washington on Wednesday night.
Game notes:
- With his goal, Brandon Sutter extended his scoring streak to six games.
- Manny Legace faced 27 shots and turned them all aside. It was the goaltender's first shutout since April, 2008.
- The Canes blocked 16 shots this game, led by Tim Gleason with four.
- Carolina out-shot Atlanta 33-27 and were led by Jussi Jokinen who had a team high six.
- Brian Pothier led all skaters with 25:02 of ice time. He also earned his first point as a Hurricane when he assisted on Jokinen's goal.
- Jussi Jokinen now leads the team in total scoring with 53 points. He also has a team high 26 goals. Next closest is Eric Staal with 20 and Ray Whitney with 19. The Finn also leads the team with five game winning goals, has a team best shooting percentage of 20%, and is tied with a team high +4, (except for Brian Pothier).
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I know it been commented on before – but I don’t think enough attention is given to Jussi Jokinen. He’s a steal at his current contract, a team leader in stats, has a great personality. He works hard every game. He has great sight of the game – meaning he sees the plays as they develop and goes after the free pucks like a bee on honey.
I’ve heard people say the Canes go as Stall goes… but I have to think they also go as Jokinen goes.
Jokinen and Pitkanen and next season
I would respectfully suggest that the team goes as Jokinen and Pitkanen go. When Jokinen scores and Pitkanen gets assists, the Hurricanes seem to roll to 4 to 1 or 4 to 2 victories. Staal is a key component to the team; but Jokinen and Pitkanen do not require the media attention or the credit they both deserve. I really hope Jim Rutherford will extend the contracts of Jokinen and Pitkanen as soon as this season ends.
I really would like to see a Jokinen/Sutter/Ruutu line next season. My preference for next year is for the first line to be Whitney/Staal/#1 draft choice [Rick Nash/Ryan Getzlaf clone].
Osala has come to Albany and has played very impressive hockey. In the second game against Norfolk he had two assists and could have easily had two more assists and one or two goals. If he works hard the remainder of this season and works hard (perhaps with Jokinen and Pitkanen) during the off-season, Osala has a great chance of making the Carolina team. If he takes on the hitting mantle of Ruutu, with his speed, strength, skating skill and hands, Osala could be a force of nature on the ice.
I like what I have seen in Pothier so far. Guy seems to be a pretty decent D man. He might end up staying here if he continues to play well….
Member of Canes Country and the Cat Scratch Reader
Isn't he in his mid 30's?
I thought I heard either John or Trip say something about him being a veteran D-Man…maybe I heard wrong…
Thank you Jim Rutherford and Ray Whitney for working together for Ray to stay a Hurricane! :)
Reading up on Japers Rink the Caps fans didnt seem to happy to let Pothier go for Corvo. I think that if he can stay healthy and takes a decent pay cut he may be worth keeping.
Caps fans were kinda pissed that they got Corvo instead of keeping Pothier. Says something good about the guy. I am impressed with him so far and am glad he is a Cane.
Member of Canes Country and the Cat Scratch Reader
That's more about perceived needs.
Just about everyone looked at the Caps’ roster and said they needed a shutdown guy. That’s not Joe. In addition, the first thing the Post did was dig up seven-year-old dirt on Corvo, and Pothier had a good rep there.
So to Capsfan, they gave up a good soldier for someone they were immediately told is a questionable character guy, and they didn’t fill their need to boot.
McErlain had a smarter take on it, calling it all incremental improvement, but that came in after all the initial reactions in DC.
That 17-year-old Hokie sitting in the rafters in Greensboro didn't see any of this coming.
Pothier
I had the same reaction. He seems to be consistent in coverage, doesn’t seem to be fazed by pressure, and thinks ahead of the play. Maybe the Hurricanes defensive style suits him better than the Caps run and gun style? In any event, it is an amazing trade by Jim Rutherford. He trades Corvo and Walker, and gets Pothier (who I would call a replacement for Corvo), Osala (who is really going to help the Hurricanes soon) and a second round pick in 2011 (as a hedge for next year’s draft). That is as close to something for nothing as I’ve seen in the NHL.
good outlook on the trade. I would have to agree. Most folks seemed to have forgoten that this was only trading a player for 20 games. Close to something for nothing is pretty accurate in my opinion
by CarolinaCanes on Mar 8, 2010 8:38 AM EST up reply actions
It's only nothing because the rest of this season is a throwaway.
Getting “something for nothing,” in that sense, happens all the time to bad teams.
I like getting a chance to evaluate Pothier — the opinion of the knowledgeable Caps fans I’ve been able to find is that he breaks down as his minutes get over 20, and it looks like we’re going to test that out. If we can’t afford Corvo this offseason, we’re getting an extended test drive on one of his potential replacements.
That 17-year-old Hokie sitting in the rafters in Greensboro didn't see any of this coming.
I’ve heard the same thing about is minutes. I don’t know how much truth there is to that, but we will see. The Caps as a team seem to fade defensively towards the end of the game, that may have something to with it. I like getting to “test drive” the guy for the rest of the season. He should be a couple mill/yr cheaper than Mighty Joe.
by CarolinaCanes on Mar 8, 2010 9:53 AM EST up reply actions
It’s super weird seeing Pothier in a ‘Canes uniform, but I’m not complaining so far. I liked the effort in Florida actually, it just seemed like nothing was falling our way. I liked the result tonight much better.
Go ’Canes!
sportstalkbuzz.com
by Great Ice-Pectations on Mar 8, 2010 1:21 AM EST reply actions
Hurrar! This will go nicely towards fantasy hockey stats! =D
On a related note… WTF is up with Brodeur and the Devils? Their lack of wins and Brodeur’s lack of being Brodeur is really hurting my teams considering I build from the net outwards and always attempt to get him/Miller/Nabby…
Does anyone reckon he’s starting to decline now due to age? Has he reached the top of his hill and is now slipping unwillingly back down?
Personally, I think the Canes should take the glory for breaking him so many times! =P
I was booing Brindy first half of the season, wanted Staal. Now I’m cheering Brindy and cursing Staal’s name!
What an awesome rebound shot score by BAM. Awesome game and I love Manny got the shut out.
My parents...
Continuously say Eric likes to “glide around the ice”. Last night when we were watching the game at Backyard Bistro, they said that a few times. “There goes Staal gliding again”.
Thank you Jim Rutherford and Ray Whitney for working together for Ray to stay a Hurricane! :)
But that is like comparing apples and oranges. It is pretty easy to look better when your line mates are Jarome Iginla and Sidney Crosby, or Getzlaf and Perry for that matter. I think people expect him to be a difference maker every night, and over an 82 game schedule, that doesn’t happen. Especially with his ice time, and the fact that at Center he has a whole hell of alot more ice to cover. This organization has yet to figure out how to use him. Mo especially. I think if you say, hey here is a finisher, you be the set up guy, he would excel. Also, if they say, hey here is a good setup guy (remember Stillman) you go in and finish em, he will excel as well. However, I don’t think they have him clearly defined here. Plus, with all due respect to Jussi and Ray’s abilities, they often times benefit from Staal drawing double coverage. It keeps him off the score sheet, but allows his wingers to have a statistical offensive zone advantage.
I know you all think I am a Staal apologist or a homer,and maybe to an extent that is true. More than anything, though, I just can’t stand the player bashing. I think alot of you weren’t around in the old day’s when the closest thing we had to a Staal was an aged Ron Francis, or Jeff O’Neil, or even worse Primeu-donna. Talk about a guy who was me first team second………
People here seem to confuse skating style for effort.
That 17-year-old Hokie sitting in the rafters in Greensboro didn't see any of this coming.
I don’t expect him to fly, I just expect him to be a “difference maker” as you say in 1 in 3 games, rather than 1 in 6. No one is disputing his skill, but assumptions go both ways. Certainly sometimes he is the one drawing players away and making his wingers’ goals possible. However, that doesn’t mean that when he’s not scoring, he’s always making magic happen. Sometimes he’s just hanging back. It happens often enough that it’s frustrating.
Whether it’s coaching or effort or whatever, we’ve seen what he can do when he wants to: the cup run, his incredible burst when Roddy was hurt, and the Olympics. I don’t care what the reason is, I’d just love to see even a part of the awesome play he had at those times at some level of consistency instead of just in emergency situations. We know he can, and when he does, it’s incredible. When he doesn’t, it’s maddening. :P
I guess I might as well not post again, since I’ve said this many times (and other Staal “haters” have said similar things) and yet every time it comes up, we’re somehow just crazy for not seeing that he’s giving his all every night. We’ve got season tickets, so we can see what’s happening off-camera, so I do watch the other players too. I just don’t see it. Especially when you can see the difference in his skating when he is actually on a point streak like you would expect. It’s the difference between his 80+ point years and his 70-something point years.
When he got healthy, he actually got on a good run and finally racked up a bunch of assists that are in keeping with how his play can be, but since the Olympics he seems to be skating more like when he was hurt, to me…
You’re not alone in your observations, from someone that has been a STH for more than a decade and watches a lot of hockey.
Clearly he’s a major bundle of talent. Clearly he coasts at times, including putting his team at a disadvantage for a second or so at the end of shifts as he “Jeff O’Neill’s” his way back to the bench (those of you that have seen Jeff in action know of what I speak).
It used to drive me crazy (still can spark a rant), but I’ve come to accept it as just being what it is with him. Every artistic employee I have ever had through the years comes with flaws…this is his.
Brian Pothier led all skaters with 25:02 of ice time. He also earned his first point as a Hurricane when he assisted on Jokinen’s goal.
How much do you want to bet Joni bought him a drink for taking some of the heat off him? I’ve been very impressed with Pothier thus far; he seems to working out nicely.
"This guy is as meat and potatoes as there is of a man."
Gleason for Emperor!
For all the sometimes deserved MoRon bashing that goes on here, I think Mo should get some credit for playing the guy and basically saying we have confidence in you, we like your game.
Eric Staal...Team Canada first line
I’d agree with you except I always wonder if this is a Mo thing or a Tom Rowe thing? I think Mo probably gets final say over who’s a scratch or not, but for some reason I’ve always gotten the impression that Rowe has almost total control over the defense.
"This guy is as meat and potatoes as there is of a man."
Gleason for Emperor!
In this particular instance, I think it’s an “org” thing to give Pothier some significant ice time and view the results.
I do agree that Rowe’s making the calls on the defense rotations, pairings, and ice time. However, I also am willing to bet that there’s some coaching meetings going on in which those decisions are being evaluated and adjusted as needed to meet org needs.
Okay, ’nough dreaming. You can wake me up now. ;-D
Phew. :wipes tear from eye: That crack about coaching meetings had me rolling in the aisles Elsker. ;)
Regardless of who’s making the decision, I’m glad it’s been made. Pothier’s working out well. I think Joni’s looked better playing less than 40 minutes a night or whatever his season high was. Perhaps this new found idea of sharing will carry over next season as well. And the tree in my front yard will start growing $100 bills…
"This guy is as meat and potatoes as there is of a man."
Gleason for Emperor!
Although I also agree with JoshCVT above that there’s some element of “test to failure” going on here, too.
As in, let’s just see what the boy’s got, and see if that “20 minute barrier” buzz is true, or not.
Perhaps the Peter Principle
Promotion until one reaches the person reaches his level of incompetence. Remember that 20 minutes with the Caps run and gun style is different than 20 minutes of structured play.
It’s clear from the barely guarded remarks of Pothier that there’s a more defensively responsible system run here than in Washington.
He’s made numerous references to the “run and gun” offense-first style there that leaves the D-men scrambling back facing two-on-one’s when players get caught cheating low.
Also mentioned more than once how the forwards came back to help the D-men get the puck out of the zone and up the ice (implying versus “going long”, as the Canes forwards were guilty of doing earlier in the season).
So, you’re right. A very different 20 minutes of ice time between there and here. Good observation.
Winning with Hurricanes Hockey and the Alternative Thrashers game compared with Panthers
The Hurricanes tend to play one of two kinds of hockey. Version 1 is the essence of the Maurice/Francis/Rowe system and can be summarized as:
1. Start out skating down hill; use hits on forecheck to separate the puck from the player; take the puck to the net, get an ugly rebound; AND FINISH — score 1 to 0;
2. Continue to press on defense; force the defense to take a penalty, CONVERT ON THE POWER PLAY: score 2 to 0;
3. As opponents have to loosen up and give space, counter-attack, CONVERT 2 on 1; score 3 to 0;
4. Play sound defense and win 4 to 1, 4 to 2, or 5 to 2.
THE SECOND VERSION
The second version of game for the Hurricanes is that they start off skating on even ice or skating uphill. Opponent scores on out-manning Hurricanes in front of the net. Score 0 to 1.
Hurricanes get tense and bang passes off sticks, ice the puck, lose coverage; score is 0 to 2.
Hurricanes get outhit and out skated for significant minutes each period; but mount a comeback of sorts. Then Hurricanes have the goalie leave open net and Hurricanes lose 1 to 4 or 2 to 4. Valiant efforts in general, but not enough to carry the day.
There have been many more occasions of Hurricanes hockey succeeding than failing over the past 20 to 25 games. When this system works, it is exciting, winning hockey. The great thing about run and gun hockey is that the team can win any game, even against a much superior opponent. The problem with run and gun hockey is that there is often no structure and the team can lose games to an inferior opponent. For teams like Pittsburgh, Chicago, and Philadelphia they have so much talent on the ice that the run and gun style tends to favor them; but only Pittsburgh has shown it can win Stanley Cups with that style of play. It is often exciting but losing hockey during the playoffs to employ run and gun.
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