Try as he might, Miikka Kiprusoff could not steal the show two nights in a row, though even in a 2-0 loss, the night was Kirprusoff's, who displayed some astounding goaltending in the Flames losing cause Thursday night.
Playing their second playoff game in as many nights, the Flames faced a different scenario on Thursday as it was the San Jose Sharks who picked up the early lead and then kept bringing the play to the Flames, in wave after wave the Sharks kept skating across the blue line, only to be turned aside as Kiprusoff flopped to the left, the right and any other direction in which the puck may be coming from.
Calgary which snared home ice advantage on Wednesday night, couldn't keep up the pace with the Sharks on Thursday, a string of five on three penalties in the second sending Mike Keenan to the boards in quest of a conversation with the officials regarding their one sided view of the infractions of the night.
The Flames to their credit almost withstood the onslaught of the six consecutive man advantage situations, fighting off the Sharks power play until the latter stages of the second period. There were but nine seconds left in that second period shooting festival when the Sharks finally put a puck behind the beleagured Kiprusoff, an almost unfair result considering the remarkable job that the Flames had done on their penalty kill.
Kiprusoff made 25 of his 41 saves on the night in that hectic second period alone, a remarkable feat that once again showcased why Calgary signed him to a lengthy and lucrative contract.
When Calgary did get scoring opportunities Evegeni Nabokov was there to stop each and everyone of the 21 shots fired his way. The Flames had a bit of bad luck around the net with both Jarome Iginla and Owen Nolan unable to connect on scoring opportunities.
The Sharks who were sufficiently frustrated on Wednesday, finally found success for all those shots they fire off during a game. While many suggest that the fates could have been kinder to them on Wednesday, they were smiling on thursday as San Jose pulled up even in the series, which seems destined to be a lengthy back and forth affair with much work for a more than ready pair of goaltenders at each end.
CBC Sports-- Penalty parade dooms Flames
CBC Sports-- Sharks too much for Calgary's Kiprusoff
Globe and Mail-- Sharks get even
National Post-- Sharks down Flames to even series
Calgary Herald-- Sharks bounce back
Calgary Herald-- Sharks bite back
San Francisco Chronicle-- Sharks take bite out of Bay Area freefall
San Jose Mercury News-- Purdy: Sharks remember winning formula
.
NHL.com-- Stats Pack
Playing their second playoff game in as many nights, the Flames faced a different scenario on Thursday as it was the San Jose Sharks who picked up the early lead and then kept bringing the play to the Flames, in wave after wave the Sharks kept skating across the blue line, only to be turned aside as Kiprusoff flopped to the left, the right and any other direction in which the puck may be coming from.
Calgary which snared home ice advantage on Wednesday night, couldn't keep up the pace with the Sharks on Thursday, a string of five on three penalties in the second sending Mike Keenan to the boards in quest of a conversation with the officials regarding their one sided view of the infractions of the night.
The Flames to their credit almost withstood the onslaught of the six consecutive man advantage situations, fighting off the Sharks power play until the latter stages of the second period. There were but nine seconds left in that second period shooting festival when the Sharks finally put a puck behind the beleagured Kiprusoff, an almost unfair result considering the remarkable job that the Flames had done on their penalty kill.
Kiprusoff made 25 of his 41 saves on the night in that hectic second period alone, a remarkable feat that once again showcased why Calgary signed him to a lengthy and lucrative contract.
When Calgary did get scoring opportunities Evegeni Nabokov was there to stop each and everyone of the 21 shots fired his way. The Flames had a bit of bad luck around the net with both Jarome Iginla and Owen Nolan unable to connect on scoring opportunities.
The Sharks who were sufficiently frustrated on Wednesday, finally found success for all those shots they fire off during a game. While many suggest that the fates could have been kinder to them on Wednesday, they were smiling on thursday as San Jose pulled up even in the series, which seems destined to be a lengthy back and forth affair with much work for a more than ready pair of goaltenders at each end.
CBC Sports-- Penalty parade dooms Flames
CBC Sports-- Sharks too much for Calgary's Kiprusoff
Globe and Mail-- Sharks get even
National Post-- Sharks down Flames to even series
Calgary Herald-- Sharks bounce back
Calgary Herald-- Sharks bite back
San Francisco Chronicle-- Sharks take bite out of Bay Area freefall
San Jose Mercury News-- Purdy: Sharks remember winning formula
.
NHL.com-- Stats Pack
No comments:
Post a Comment