Game 73: Devils 4, Avalanche 2

by Joe Dunman on Mar 15, 2008 8:53 PM MDT in News Comment 15 comments

photo courtesy of David Zalubowski/AP

I'll be totally honest with you. I didn't watch much of this game, and I'm pretty glad that I didn't. On paper, the game looks fairly even, with shots and hits being similar for both teams. But on the scoreboard and between the pipes, it was all New Jersey.

Martin Brodeur set a new record today, winning his 40th game for the seventh time in his career---something no other goalie has ever done. I guess this blog will have to up its game a bit if it's ever going to convince anyone.

I did watch enough of the game to see Ryan Smyth put a great shot on goal at the very end of the second period, but it was his only shot of the day and Brodeur's sweet glove save pretty much summed up the entire game.

If there's one bright spot about this loss, it's that Paul Stastny continues to be consistent as hell since he returned from his appendectomy/groin injury layoff. He has four points in his last three games (1g, 1a against the Devils), and twelve points total in the twelve games he's been back. That's not too shabby at all.

Jose Theodore didn't have a very good game, which was bound to happen sometime. The guy's been a save machine for a long time now, so one bad showing shouldn't worry anyone. If he blows up in the Minnesota game on Monday, then I'll ready my will and check my life insurance policy.

Let's just put this turd of a game behind us and move on.

One more thing, though. I'm no longer entertained by Cody McLeod, and it's time Coach Q benched him for somebody that can actually contribute to the team's offense with grit that doesn't come across like a gimmick or a sideshow. Cody McCormick, maybe? Wyatt Smith? Anyone?

Bueller? Bueller?

Monday's game against the Wild is a must-win, and I'm not just tossing that term around loosely. Minnesota beat the Kings, so they're now tied with the Avs for first place in the Northwest. It's time for them to go down.

Stars of the Game:

Martin Brodeur (24sv, .923)

Andrew Brunette (0g, 1a)

Brian Gionta (0g, 2a)

Kittens Killed:

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Comments

Q still can't grasp

the concept of successful goaltender management. Any time a goalie plays as many games straight as Theo has(excluding Brodeur, Luongo and Nabakov) they'll end up burnt out and play poorly like Theo has done lately and as you mentioned all most all our last few games are must win division games so we need Theo to be fresh and at the top of his game which won't happen if he plays every remaining game.

As for Brodeur's 40 game seasons i don't find it as great as everyone else, yes its a lot of wins and shows he can play at his best but considering he plays around 70 games a year that's still averaging 25ish losses to go with those wins.

How did Bruno manage to get the second star over Stastny, i didn't watch the game because it was finished before i even woke up(10.00am) but since Stastny got 2pts over Brunos 1 shouldn't he have got the second star?

by Savage33 on Mar 15, 2008 9:45 PM MDT reply actions 0 recs

Stars

The stars of a game aren't necessarily awarded by points. Whoever chose them (it changes with each game, like Adrian Dater chose the stars for the Edmonton game) decided that Bruno's performance overall, not just on the scoreboard, stood above everyone else. I don't know if he really deserved it more, but it's not just based on points.

by Joe Dunman on Mar 15, 2008 10:01 PM MDT up reply actions 0 recs

i didn't think it was quite so bad

we had lots of chances and the game was quite back and forth. it came down to Brodeur way outplaying Theodore, imo. Hopefully he gets it back for next game.

by thedoctor on Mar 16, 2008 12:05 AM MDT reply actions 0 recs

Re: I didn't think

Yeah, that's pretty much my sentiment, as well.

by Joe Dunman on Mar 16, 2008 6:06 AM MDT up reply actions 0 recs

Agreed

I feel the same way. We actually looked pretty good, Brodeur was just unbelievable.

by Rather Dashing on Mar 16, 2008 2:00 PM MDT up reply actions 0 recs

McLeod

I agree, His "trip" that precipitated the fight with Salvador in the opening minutes of the game was shameful.
At best it was an attempt to goad Salvador into a fight to stir things up right off the bat. At worst it was an attempt at a knee on knee hit. Either way it was a shameful play that could've resulted in an injury. I might be overreacting, but that's not the kind of play the Avs should tolerate or promote. He was penalized for tripping, as he should've been, but the intent took his reputation down a notch in my eyes.

by jd21 on Mar 16, 2008 10:51 AM MDT reply actions 0 recs

This happened

I told my wife, just as I said something nice about him he goes and does this shit.

by Jibblescribbits on Mar 16, 2008 11:58 AM MDT up reply actions 0 recs

the trip

the oddest thing about the trip was that Chico Resch (the Devils colorless color guy) defended McLeod. Surely McLeod didn't mean to do that. Um, right.

In related news, the Devils PBP guy was a "'Lanche" person. I didn't know there were any left in the world, and it was painful to listen to. Interestingly, he seemed to drop it substantially as the game wore on; I wonder if someone in the booth mentioned that no one uses that term any more.

by David Driscoll-Carignan on Mar 17, 2008 7:18 AM MDT up reply actions 0 recs