The game was a bit boring since Lundqvist played a great game (hence keeping the Habs goals totals down), and the Rangers employed a very chippy, defensive style of hockey which the Habs worked around by taking lots and lots of perimeter shots.
On the whole, the Habs outplayed the Rangers pretty solidly in this one, and it would have been more entertaining if the Rangers had opened it up a bit more (which they usually do against the Habs - I guess they've been burned that way too many times to try it again, lol), but they never did.
According to Rangers fan, that was dirty as ****...
Maybe dirty, but not that bad. Anytime a home team announcer says something specific it's hard to ever talk about it objectively again, Leetch, says it so there you go. I mean, look at all the repetition on this board. I'm not defending slewfoting, just commenting on your paraphrasing of the Rangers fans.
Marc Staal is allowed to play without taking penalties, we can trade that for this one play.
I'm starting to think that RDS just picks random people to run out of town. I don't get why people see Andrei do one good thing, and then assume he should be capable of doing it all the time.
Andrei's biggest issue is that he isn't the smartest hockey player in the world. He reminds me alot of Martin Rucinksy... talented, but oh so dumb. Expecting a dumb player to look like Jagr circa '90's all the time just because we all saw him doing something Jagr'ish once in 2008... Andrei will get you 20 goals a season, will also get you a few laughs per game, and is probably someone a Cup contender doesn't have on the roster. He's not quite ideal as a scoring forward, is not ideal as a 3rd/4th line checking player, but is talented enough to play in the NHL.
Gaston Therrien showed that play to make Andrei looks bad and i think thats very hypocrite.
If there's a camera on every player, it will show that every single player doesn't give their 100% in every single back check. I've seen Gomez done that several time, I've seen Cammy not backchecking hard enough that lead to a scoring chances.
Even Plekanec on that play didn't give his all his energy to backcheck.
Showing one play to bash a guy on his entire game is just stupid. Like I said earlier, AK was forecheking hard and playing with intensity in the third period and kept the play away from the defensive zone almost every of his shifts in the third but of course they won't show that, they want to bash him.
I agree that it was very hypocrite move on Therrien's part and shows and effort by RDS to try and discredit Andrei anyway they can. However, I still think that Andrei had identified the third man as his man to cover and took a moment there to put on the jets and try to catch him. He deserves some blame on that play, but he may have been gassed out from his shift or whatever so I don't think he deserved any punishment and Martin continued playing him so I think the point is moot. Martin saw this and the buffoons on RDS arent teaching him any hockey and he won't listen to their "advice" either. Anyways, all in all, I agree that Andrei played a good game.
In a time where the habs need their players to play above and beyond their normal duties, Darche just keeps bringing it night after night.
The team has shown alot of character during this barrage of injuries. Its great to see.
When I watch Darche, he looks like a guy that counts it a priviledge to play in the NHL. He is not the most talented but he is solid defensively and can take a hit for the team without retaliation. He is a solid bottom 6 guy that has toiled lots of years in the minors and is giving it all he's got in order to stay in the NHL.
In a time where the habs need their players to play above and beyond their normal duties, Darche just keeps bringing it night after night.
The team has shown alot of character during this barrage of injuries. Its great to see.
Halfway through the game I was chuckling to myself about all the 13th forward or happy to be in the minors with his one way contract talk here all summer, but he has really stepped up, I was one of the ones that let out a groan when he was re-signed. And that was nothing against him, I love his story and always route for underdogs, he also comes off as very genuine and one of the nicest guys in the league, I just didn't think there was room for him but he has earned his keep. Yes, he can go stretches with doing nothing, but he also makes up for those stretches with ones like these.
When I watch Darche, he looks like a guy that counts it a priviledge to play in the NHL. He is not the most talented but he is solid defensively and can take a hit for the team without retaliation. He is a solid bottom 6 guy that has toiled lots of years in the minors and is giving it all he's got in order to stay in the NHL.
I really like the play he did in the crease where he pushed the puck with his hand out of harms way.
Rangers fans can say whatever, but Dubinsky is in fights with the elite players all the time cause of his crap...anyone notice when he took out PK's feet on the icing call in the Montreal end and there was no call???
I agree that it was very hypocrite move on Therrien's part and shows and effort by RDS to try and discredit Andrei anyway they can. However, I still think that Andrei had identified the third man as his man to cover and took a moment there to put on the jets and try to catch him. He deserves some blame on that play, but he may have been gassed out from his shift or whatever so I don't think he deserved any punishment and Martin continued playing him so I think the point is moot. Martin saw this and the buffoons on RDS arent teaching him any hockey and he won't listen to their "advice" either. Anyways, all in all, I agree that Andrei played a good game.
A good second half
But there aren't many Habs that really play all that well in the first half. Like you said, at least, he was good enough to play in the third while Eller and Pyatt haven't. IF AK plays over a defensive specialist (Pyatt) in the third to protect a lead, he must have done something right.
And holy F, I regret wandering into that (now-closed) thread on the main board about Subban's slewfoot. I just wanted to see the replay and see what the fuss was about. What a disturbing and horrific experience of explosive, nuclear reaction. And I happen to think that a slewfoot is a dangerous play -- if it's followed through by winding the guy back with your upper body. A guy can really hit his head backward hard if it's executed 'properly'. This was harldy dirty intent to injure. Should've been a 2 minute minor. Period.
