View From The Press Box -- Aeros Take 2-0 Series Lead on Hamilton

Colton Gillies with the game winner.

The Aeros played an overall better game tonight in defeating Hamilton 3-2 this afternoon. Matt Hackett played another good game, and the Aeros were able to find more ways to get the puck past Drew MacIntyre, which was supposed to be impossible.

The Aeros aren't out of the woods yet. They now have three games to play in Hamilton, and they're looking a bit beat up. All that's known on Brett Bulmer was a cryptic "he's out" that I got from the team before the game. But whether that was just for the game or the series is a question mark, though after seeing him on crutches after the game, I'm not expecting him back on Tuesday.

As for Carson McMillan, your guess right now is as good as mine. Mike Yeo didn't know and said that they were awaiting the results from the medical tests.

I'll try to get back later tonight with quotes from Yeo, Jon DiSalvatore, Colton Gillies, and Matt Kassian, but since I want you to read my Press story in the morning, don't expect too much ;-) But since we had to fight through a gaggle of TV cameras to get our stuff after the game, you better bet I'll get something posted.

If you're curious, the Press story tomorrow will have a quote from Matt Kassian on Derek Boogaard, but I was also able to get this from Colton Gillies, who was Boogaard's teammate for a season in Minnesota.

"He was a really good guy," Gillies said. "It’s not a good thing."

And I didn't press it further since Gillies seemed to get choked up over the matter.

Bulmer Out/Kassian In

A brief injury update. Brett Bulmer is out today, and Matt Kassian is in. We couldn't confirm the seriousness of Bulmer's injury -- the Aeros wouldn't give out that info -- but I'm guessing that it's more than just one of those day-to-day things.

Notes, Quotes & Observations from Game One, Houston v. Hamilton

Brett Bulmer on the ice after being injured.

Aeros dominated the first half of the game. Hamilton controlled the second half. Matt Hackett was fantastic throughout. And the Aeros got the 2-1 win despite being out-shot and take the 1-0 series lead.

1. According to Mike Yeo, Brett Bulmer wasn't injured as seriously as was first feared. He is, however, day-to-day, and we're not really sure, beyond what Yeo said, as to just how bad Bulmer was injured.

2. If he can't go on Sunday, my best guess is that Matt Kassian will play. But I've been wrong way too much, so who knows who will really play if the situation comes to that.

3. Jed Ortmeyer attributed Hackett's play to Game Seven in Milwaukee.

"I think that Game Seven, he bounced back," Ortmeyer said. "His confidence, you could see it in him. He was on the top of his crease. He was battling through traffic and getting to rebounds and making sure that he could see pucks. It was a big boost for him and for our team last series, and he played great tonight."

4. And Hackett told us he was just having fun out there on the ice.

"It’s just fun," he said. "It’s why I picked to be a goalie. It’s all the pressure at the end there. It’s what makes the position fun. I was glad to make a couple of big saves there for the boys."

5. While the Aeros didn't play their best game, and while they let Hamilton dominate the third period, Mike Yeo said he's not much of a believe in momentum carrying over from game to game. Yeo also believes that this game was something the Aeros needed, and for more than just the win.

"Certainly we gave them momentum in this game," he said. "We gave them confidence going into the next game. At the same time, I think – I don’t believe in the whole we got momentum, they got momentum. I think that the next game is a completely different animal. I think that there’s an understanding on our part, and guys felt it on the bench. And they could see that we weren’t doing the right things, and that was keeping us from getting to our game. And it was helping them to get to theirs.

"I think we needed this. We don’t have a rivalry or hatred with this team, or even necessarily the respect factor that we need to. The quicker that you can get those things into your game, the more urgency you’re going to play with, shift in and shift out. And you can understand that whatever the situation, whatever the score is, you have to go out and play a certain way."

6. I liked the attitude of Ortmeyer and Hackett after the game. Both guys thought it was important to get the Game One win, for obvious reasons. But to both of them, Game One was over and the important thing is Sunday.

"It’s huge," Ortmeyer said of the win. "That first win secures us the home ice. Their goal is to come in here with a split. To get that first one is huge for us. We know that they’re going to come hard. It’s a win for them to get a split here. So game two’s going to be even more important now."

And Hackett added: "The first game’s always huge, obviously. But Sunday’s a big game. We don’t want them to get a split. We want to go into their barn up two-nothing. For sure, it’s a bigger game on Sunday."

7. For the curious, out in the Eastern Conference, Binghamton took the first two games from Charlotte, in Charlotte, and now the teams will be heading to Binghamton for three games as the Senators need to win just two of the possible five remaining games.

8. Now seeing as how the AHL only awarded the Aeros one of three stars after the Game Seven win over Milwaukee -- the Admirals were given the other two stars which is kind of strange seeing as how they like, you know, lost, it's going to be interesting to see if they award any to the Aeros in the Saturday Morning Skate. I'm guessing that Sens goalie Robin Lehner will get a star since he pitched the shutout and stopped 35 Charlotte shots. I think they'll probably give another to the Sens Ryan Potulny since he scored two of the Sens' three goals. One would think that Hackett would be a lock for the other star, seeing as how he stopped 38 of 39 shots while leading his team to a 2-1 victory. But this is the AHL office we're talking about, so I'm guessing the final star will go to Hamilton's Mathieu Carle since, of course, he scored and prevented the Bulldogs from getting shutout.

9. That's it for now. See everybody at the Toy Box on Sunday afternoon.

#Winning

I remember last year when I was covering for Andrew for the Chronicle and I thought the Aeros played a terrific game, had my story three-quarters written. I run downstiars for quotes and ... Yeo is just pissed. He hated the game. And I'm thinking, "Great! REWRITE!"

Well, tonight I got the opposite. I thought the second period was absolute crap and they were extremely lucky to get out of that with just a tie. Was expecting Yeo, or someone, anyone, to acknowledge this. (And then when they didn't, I didn't want to be the jackass to say, "Yeah, you won, good for you. But what about that AWFUL second period?")

But everyone we talked to was full of praise and pride. I mean, obviously limiting shots like that is impressive, but man, all three of us, at the end of the second period, said, "Milwaukee is winning this game tonight. No. Question."

Hey, shows you what we know.

What I do know is that Ally, @TheAnthemSinger, had the tweet of the night. She sits down behind the Aeros' net and often has signs with her: "NEW SIGN SIDE 1: Stay Hackett, stay. Good goalie. SIDE 2: Bad Goalie."

Seriously, this going behind the net and standing around back there in a crisis of indecision is going to burnnnnn like a thousand suns when it results in a goal. I am literally gonna have a stroke and die one of these nights watching that.

Seems like a fairly new thing, too. Looks like a Tordjman move, come to think of it. Stop doing that.

Also, in the third, I said, "Man, I'd LOVE a McMillan goal right about now." BOOM, I really DID have you in the pool, Big Mac! He's photogenic AND clutch. Can't really ask for much more from a hockey player.

I told the boys that if the Aeros lost tonight, I was going to do a stick figure of Kassian sitting in the stands in a suit in my usual "stick figures as a form of protest" way. Glad I didn't have to do that, because I wanna go to bed ASAP. And despite Bulmer passing it right to the stick of an Admiral when entering the zone on the first solid offensive chance I saw for him, he did seem to have more of an impact tonight, playing more minutes, etc.

Finally, props to the Aeros staff for the really funny Billy Madison clip. Totally went top shelf on that one. WTG.

Anyway, see you crazy kids tomorrow night. Bring your outside voices.

Aeros sign Bulmer, Jobke

I haven't gotten real excited about reporting this because, honestly, I'm not sure we'll see these guys play unless the Aeros are hit with a rash of injuries.

But the Wild have signed LW Brett Bulmer to an entry level deal and he's joining the Aeros on an amateur tryout, along with D Colton Jobke.

Bulmer's still a wee tot at just 18 (though turning 19 next week) so he'd have to make the Wild next year to turn pro. I'd expect him to spend another year in junior. He's not a huge scorer but he's got a mean streak, so I kinda think they've got power forward (think Colton Gillies) designs on him. We'll see.

The Aeros also signed Jobke to an ATO. He's undrafted but the Wild like him and are keeping him in the bullpen, so to speak, while he comes up in juniors.

However, in an interview with your hero and mine, Kevin Falness, over at Wild HQ, Yeo basically said these guys aren't exactly locks for the playing roster. Sure, the AHL is a development league, but a good bunch of the guys on the current roster ARE developing and they're not going to sit a Nate Prosser or Casey Wellman in the playoffs for a kid fresh out of junior. (Should add, he wasn't that direct about it, but this is me reading between the lines.)

So, like I said, nothing to get excited about here -- unless you're one of those guys.