It is over...

In spectacular Wild fashion, the team's only hope for getting by Chicago injured himself during warmups. Nik Backstrom pulled something, and Josh Harding will get the call against the 'Hawks. That mean, Darcy Kuemper is on his way to Chicago.

Everyone's worst fear has been realized, so let me be among the first to say:

Aeros Lose Game Two 3-2 to Grand Rapids

Missing: the Houston Aeros hockey team from Friday night. If found, please return to head coach John Torchetti because he needs them desperately in Grand Rapids on Wednesday night.

Make no mistake, the Aeros played a bad hockey game tonight. That they lost only 3-2 is a testament to the play of goalie Darcy Kuemper and to the ability of the team to do whatever it wants when it wants to, like say, in the last seven or so minutes of a game they've already pretty much lost.

"“We didn’t come out at all,” head coach John Torchetti said bluntly. “We finally played the last seven minutes of the [third] period. Kuemper did a great job of keeping us in it. I’ve got to do a better job of keeping us focused, I guess, because we certainly didn’t show up.”

That Torchetti has to work on keeping his team focused during the playoffs is somewhat worrisome. What's more worrisome is what appeared to be the team's general approach to the game: playing not to lose instead of playing to win. The approach seemed to be counting on Kuemper to play like Superman -- without providing any help for Kuemper -- and hoping for a shot or two to get into the net.

Kuemper was superb again. The three goals weren't his fault, and included deflections and defensive lapses. There was no intensity to the Aeros game while the Griffins came out hitting and attacking and swatting away at will the Aeros piddly attempts at offense. The Aeros trailed 3-0 late in the third before showing some signs of life and scoring late. They even had a chance to tie the game with under 10 seconds on the clock, but it was too little to late.

"I thought we were still in the game,” Torchetti said. “We didn’t deserve any part of this game, but we were still in the game.”

But sometimes being in the game just isn't good enough.

This was a disappointing game for the fans hoping to see the Aeros win game two and move a step closer to the second round of the playoffs. Instead, the Aeros now find themselves having to win two of three games in Grand Rapids if they're going to advance, and if they're going to prolong the stay of the Aeros in Houston for at least another week or two.

Welcome To The Darcy Kuemper Show

Welcome to the Darcy Kuemper Show/photo John Royal

There were many superb things about tonight's 3-0 game one playoff win over the visiting Grand Rapids Griffins. The Aeros played the best game as a team that I've seen in a long time. Marco Scandella was superb. Justin Fontaine did what Justin Fontaine does.

But nothing compares to the playoff debut of one Darcy Kuemper. Kuemper stopped all 36 shots he faced. Some of the stops were easy, but some of those stops were those that just drop your jaw, shake your head, and wonder did you just see what you just saw. He faced one barrage late in the second period when the Aeros were up only 1-0 and the Griffins were on a 4x3 power play. Kuemper just dealt with the barrage like he was sitting on his porch swatting away some lazy flies just hovering over his head, never breaking a sweat.

Head coach John Torchetti referred to Kuemper's calmness out on the ice and how that just made things easier for the team. And there was a calmness to Kuemper, a stillness. Like a concrete bunker anchored during a hurricane with the action swirling around him. 

"He keeps things calm for us," Torchetti said. "He didn’t give a lot of rebounds, which is a big plus for us and makes our job a little bit easier."
 
Kuemper just kind of shrugged off all of the attention after the game, acting as if it was just another game in the juniors instead of a professional playoff game.

"I played quite a few playoffs games in juniors, a lot of games in juniors," Kuemper said. "I just always try to touch back on those experiences, recall those memories, what went well, what didn’t, and use those to just play my game out there."

Darcy Kuemper, just one of the guys /photo John Royal

Kuemper had some help from the team playing it's best all-around game in months. Marco Scandella put the Aeros up 1-0 with a power play goal at 11:55 of the second from up over the circle. Justin Fontaine got a breakaway at 16:52 which pretty much put the game away. Then Fontaine finished the scoring with a nearly impossible angled empty netter at 18:14 of the third.

Fontaine said he got lucky on his breakaway. But despite his statements, he looked to be in control on the entire play.

"Just kind of flying up the middle, a good look," Fontaine said. "The puck wouldn’t settle down for me, kind of made a move and missed the puck, but it ended up going in. I’ll take that for sure."

Justin Fontaine gets lucky/photo John Royal

But with the way Kuemper was playing, nothing else really seemed to matter. There was this calmness to his play, a quietness to his actions, no wasted motion. He was there at all times, just where his team needed him to be, when they needed him to be there. He said he was lucky at times, but like Fontaine on his breakaway, if there was any luck involved in any of his stops, it just wasn't evident to onlookers.

"I just want to do my part, especially when I saw the guys going early there, the way they were playing, I just wanted to do my part and not let them down," Kuemper said. "Everyone had each other’s backs, and we came away with game one."

It was fun game to watch. Tense. Lots of hitting. It was playoff hockey at its finest. Here's to a few more of these before the team's run in Houston comes to its unfortunate end. And meanwhile, welcome to a new edition of the Darcy Kuemper Show, it's a wonderful, fantastic thing to witness.

The Aeros are up 1-0 in the series, and host game two on Sunday afternoon at 5:05 before heading back to Grand Rapids for the rest of the series. 

Paul Mara with a first period hit/photo John Royal

View from the Pressbox - Aeros get tough, beat Griffins 3-0

Before I got to the Toyota Center, I really had no feel for the series one way or the other. The Aeros played well down the stretch, but lost the last game of the season to fall to the No. 6 seed. The Griffins only won nine of their last 20 games, but they won their division and beat the Aeros four times in the six regular season meetings.

But when I got to the rink, took the elevator downstairs and felt that sweet playoff Toyota Center humidity, I knew the Aeros would win the game.

It was hot as a mo-fo down there, and all the quotes from the past came flying back to me. Previous victims Peoria (three times), Milwaukee (twice) and Hamilton (twice) all hated playing in Houston this time of year. On the record they say they'll deal with it. Off the record, they use double hyphenated curse words about how much weight they lose and now crappy the ice is in the third period.

Fluids, IVs, fruit, carbs ... they try all the tricks in the books.

And all the while, Todd McLellan, Rob Daum, Kevin Constantine, Mike Yeo and John Torchetti have used it to their advantage to either advance in the playoffs or late in the season to pile up the points in March and April.

Just look at the record books. The Aeros are hard to beat in Houston this time of year. No, they're not perfect, but more often than not they way.

Having said all that, the Aeros played an absolutely magnificent first-round game. They came out hitting (Mikael Granlund!), throwing the body and putting pucks on net. Two timely goals in the second period sandwiched around Darcy Kuemper's Superman heroics while killing off the 4-on-3 penalty, and you've got a recipe for a Game 1 win.

There is still much work to be done, and the Aeros know they will get a desperate Grand Rapids team from the get-go on Sunday. It's the Griffins that have to win three of the last four games to advance. The Aeros are in the driver's seat, and if they play like they did Friday, they'll be moving on to round 2 soon enough.

The playoffs begin tonight vs. Grand Rapids

Because I was the Aeros Houston Chronicle beat writer for 10 years, I spent way more time that most studying the Aeros, their opponents and the big picture around every game.

I loved that gig more than anything else I have ever done as a freelancer, and I am sad that Houston will not have hockey at Toyota Center next season. 

This is the last run for the Aeros, so I know we all hope they surprise some people and make some noise in the 2013 Calder Cup playoffs. 

Every spring, when the Aeros made the playoffs, I would do a story on the matchups: Who had the better offense, defense, special teams, goalies, coaches and intangibles. And at the very end of that, I would offer a prediction on the series. 

It was a fun process, and on the prediction side, I was a pretty good 13-4. 

So here we are, at the foot of the playoffs of the Aeros last season in Houston ... and I really have no idea how the team will do. I have no gut feeling, but it is leaning more one way than the other now that the Wild had to recall Carson McMillan from the Aeros today. 

Game 1 is epic in this 2-3 series, especially for the lower seeded team. I think whoever wins Game 1 will win the series. The Griffins are the more skilled team, but I think the Aeros have the right intangibles, coaching and goaltending to pull off an upset. And even though this is a 3 vs. 6 matchup, only two points separated the teams in the final standings. 

And now, more from the Aeros players and coaches about their strengths andwhat they need to do to win and advance:

Aeros defenseman Paul Mara (No. 2)

"I think the strength of the team is the team. I don’t think there are any individuals on the team. I think everyone’s bought into our team system and that’s what’s made us successful here throughout the year. I think that’s what we’re going to carry into the playoffs and play as a team and that’s what’s going to help us win."

Aeros forward Chad Rau (No. 20)

"We’ve just got to have a good start. That’s really key and important for us. Keeping them off the power play, too. They’ve got some skilled guys who can put the puck in the net, so that would be a big focus of our is being disciplined and trying to play them 5 on 5."

Aeros defenseman Drew Bagnall (No. 4)

"The key for us is to play as a team, play our systems. Collectively, we’re a lot better than we could ever be individually, so that’s our strength. Just to out-compete teams, have that worker mentality that no one’s going to beat us."

Aeros rookie forward Jason Zucker (No. 16)

"We need to get the puck in deep and use our speed. A lot of teams have trouble with our speed. It’s tough for anybody to adjust to a fast-paced game, so we’ve  got to make sure we’re coming out, getting the puck in deep, eliminating our turnovers and getting the puck on net."

Aeros Head Coach John Torchetti and hjs take on the first opponent, the Grand Rapids Griffins:

"(They) Put a lot of pucks on net. You could bit sitting there and next thing you know it’s 10 shots to 4. We watched them play last night and they were up 10 shots to 4. For us, we’ve just got to do a good job of taking away time and space. They have speedy forwards, they’re not really going to dump the puck in too much, so we want to take away a lot of the neutral zone, making sure we’ve got good gaps, and then we’re re-gapping off of turnovers that we throw back outside the neutral zone. Just making sure we take a little time and space and be a little bit physical."

Here are the playoff sheets from the AHL on all the first round series. Based on these, who do you think has the edge in Round 1?

Houston Aeros vs. Grand Rapids Griffins (Best of five, first round)

Yesterday, we heard from Debbie Downer, and she said the Griffins would beat the Aeros in five games. If that comes to fruition, the Aeros season and existence (for now) is over. Today, we got a letter from Sunshine Sally, who has a different take.

2013 Calder Cup Playoffs
Western Conference Quarter Finals - Best of five
Houston Aeros (6 - Seed) vs. Grand Rapids Griffins (3 - Seed)

Schedule:
1 Grand Rapids at Houston                    Friday, Apr. 26             7:05 PM
2 Grand Rapids at Houston                    Sunday, Apr. 28            5:05 PM
3 Houston at Grand Rapids                    Wednesday, May 1       7:00 PM (ET)
4 Houston at Grand Rapids                    Friday, May 3               7:00 PM (ET) - X
5 Houston at Grand Rapids                    Saturday, May 4           7:00 PM (ET) - X
X = If Necessary


Dear Aeros fan, 

Griffins in five, Debbie? Really? Did you not watch a single game this team played in the last month? Aside from a little slump against the Griffins at home, the Aeros were smokin' hot - kicking tail and taking names. They went 9-1 against the teams they had to beat, and finished with an even .500 record against the really good teams that will be in the playoffs this spring. 

One could argue that the South Division was the very best in the AHL. Four of the five teams made the playoffs and Four of the five teams were in the top six in the entire conference. 

The Aeros played very well against Texas and OKC this year, and even held their own against Charlotte after a slow start against that team. 

Debbie even mentioned something about the Aeros having a cold goalie going into the playoffs. True, Kuemper has not played in a bit, but he did just fine if not great the last time he went awhile with no game action. That kid is a competitor, and I think he will be one of the reasons the Aeros will make a very long run in the postseason this year. 

I like Fontaine, Zucker and Rau ... and so long as Grandlund is here, I'll take that, too. If the Aeros get on the same page offensively, and get some timely scoring from the second and third lines, watch out. I truly believe the Aeros will play their hearts out this Spring, and first, they will take care of the Griffins rather quickly. 

Sally Sunshine's prediction is Aeros in four. 

Tomorrow, we'll give you a balanced prediction with comments from some of the players and head coach John Torchetti.

Aeros to Host Grand Rapids in Games 1, 2 This Weekend at Toyota Center

The playoffs start this weekend, so let's have a debate. Do the Aeros have what it takes to make a deep run in the postseason? Today, I'm going to be Debbie Downer. This is why the Aeros won't go very far, and this is why you'd better make sure your butts are in the seats for Game 2 of the series so you can say  you were at the last Aeros game ever.


2013 Calder Cup Playoffs

Western Conference Quarter Finals - Best of five
Houston Aeros (6 - Seed) vs. Grand Rapids Griffins (3 - Seed)

Schedule:
1 Grand Rapids at Houston                    Friday, Apr. 26             7:05 PM
2 Grand Rapids at Houston                    Sunday, Apr. 28            5:05 PM
3 Houston at Grand Rapids                    Wednesday, May 1       7:00 PM (ET)
4 Houston at Grand Rapids                    Friday, May 3               7:00 PM (ET) - X
5 Houston at Grand Rapids                    Saturday, May 4           7:00 PM (ET) - X
X = If Necessary



Dear Aeros fan, 

I'm not going to start this one out with any fluff. After grinding their way through 76 games, the Aeros finished the regular season with 90 points, and that was good enough for only 6th place in the Western Conference. That just goes to show you how good ALL the playoff teams are. I can almost make a legitimate case as to why every team in this conference could be skating for the Calder Cup in June. 

But with the Aeros leaving for Des Moines after the season, it's almost hard not to picture this squad making a miracle run and giving Houston hockey fans one more taste of glory. 

As much as I want to believe that is a realistic possibility, my brain says otherwise. I'd love to see them take out Grand Rapids in the first round and then upset another team to make things very interesting. But the dice and cards and all that stuff just isn't lining up right now. I don't have a good feeling about the roster right now due to all the recent injuries in Minnesota, and I really don't like entering the playoffs with a cold goalie in a best-of-five series.

I am blessed and have seen a lot of playoff hockey since 1994, and I usually have a good pulse on the team going into the playoffs. While I hope I am wrong, and I hope I get flamed off the internet if I don't call it right, but I think Sunday will be the last Aeros game of the season ... and foreseeable future. 

I know the team is hot recently, but they beat up on non-playoff teams down the stretch and while that was good enough to get them into the playoffs, it's not going to be good enough to get by a division winner like Grand Rapids. 

Debbie Downer's prediction is Grand Rapids in five. 

Tomorrow, we'll hear from Sunshine Sally, who has a different take on this series and the rest of the playoffs.

Harding, Aeros nip Stars 4-3 in Cedar Park

The Aeros are on a serious run right now. After last night's 4-3 win over Texas, the Aeros have won three in a row and six of seven overall since a four game winless slide. They can still get home ice advantage in the first round of the playoffs, but they'd have to win out and get a loss by the Charlotte Checkers today.

Not likely, but it is possible. Tomorrow's season finale at OKC could mean quite a bit. Should be a fun way to close out the season.

Josh Harding was solid in the first of his two rehab starts, and the Aeros abused the Stars third line. Chad Rau led the way with three points, and he's been getting hot during the Aeros recent winning ways.

Tonight, the Aeros play at San Antonio and really need a win against the Rampage, who have really tanked recently. As much as I respect the fans over there, a loss by the Aeros today would be truly embarrassing when you consider what is at stake.

The Aeros need to do everything they can do to avoid the Texas Stars in the first round. I'd much rather take my chances against the No. 1 team in the second round, not the first-round best of five.

I know I have said this over and over, but Jim Mill and John Torchetti have done a tremendous job getting guys to fill the gaps and to play hard all season long. They deserve a ton of credit, but there is still much to be done.

The Playoffs - One Last Mission

Barring an absolute disaster on the ice this weekend, the Aeros will qualify for the postseason and will host playoffs next week at the Toyota Center. Nevermind the rumors about the team having to play its playoff games in St. Paul.

But this is the post that I have dreaded writing for several months now. The dots have all lined up, the rumors aren't rumors anymore, and the Aeros are being kicked out the Toyota Center. The Wild will move the team to Des Moines and will play there as the Iowa Wild.

Here is the Russo Blog.
Here is the St. Paul Pioneer Press Story
Here is the Heather's report in the Chronicle.
Here is the Des Moines Register's version. 
Here is the Hockey Wilderness story.

Throughout all of this, the team has been unified with its messaging. They said they'd do whatever it takes to stay in Houston, and I believe they did. But a couple of weeks ago, when Mike Russo wrote on his blog that an announcement would be coming soon about the Aeros leaving, the front office continued its mantra that negotiations were still underway and in progress.

They gave that message to the Houston Press, the Houston Chronicle, KPRC Channel 2 and anyone else that asked about it.

They may very well have been true, but the team was also preparing for good-bye. Three sources (AHL media colleague, Toyota Center employee and a random Des Moines fan that probably was not a random Des Moines fan) told me off the record that it was a done deal even when it still was not a done deal. Even then, I just did feel entirely right about "breaking " the story on this blog.

I chose not to talk about those comments publicly, and I am still comfortable with my decision not to. I had no one on the record, and no one gave me the information on background. It just would not have been ethical, even though this is "just a blog ..."

After the first Russo story broke, the team started to prepare for the inevitable. One of our commenters sent us a link to the picture you see here, and the link was indeed live until after I tweeted and then purposely retracted that image.

The image was then modified without the "One Last Mission" slogan than we'll probably see going forward.

As a fan, I hate that we were officially kept in the dark for many months while the Wild and Aeros brass visited arenas in Wichita, Kansas City and Des Moines. But I think I understand the business side of sports enough to know that the organization had to make preparations in advance of being kicked out of Houston.

Had they told everyone back in February that the team was going to leave, employees would have lost interest and started looking for other jobs and groups may have shied away from doing business with the team. And it just would have been awkward for everyone from season ticket holders, to the front office ... everything.

The Wild wanted to stay folks; that was their first preference. But the Toyota Center, I believe, priced them out of the market so they could proceed with more concerts. The building needs the weekend dates because they were losing out to other venues in town that are better for concerts.

Many people still hope that hockey will return to Houston. I think it will some day, but I think it will only work when the Toyota Center folks buy a team and set up a deal kind of like the way the San Antonio Rampage and Lake Erie Monsters operate their teams. They get full control of the revenue streams, and the building gets to pick and choose the absolute best dates for concerts, NBA and then hockey.

The only other option, really, is for a multi-purpose facility being built either near Reliant Center or in one of the suburbs. The market has done well in the AHL, and I think that'd be enough to get a team back down here to Houston.

It's hard to say good-bye; this has been "my team" for 19 years and I have seen hundreds of games since the 1994 when the team took the ice in the IHL. It's kind of like losing a family member to cancer, an excruciating disease that usually kills slowly, while at times giving you hope that you can beat it.

But the Aeros were diagnosed with a Stage IV tumor late last Spring, and we've seen the process as it's played out right in front of our very eyes. Now, the Aeros are in hospice, at home and resting comfortably and just waiting for the day when the Good Lord calls them home.

As you all baseball movie buffs know, Iowa's not heaven ... but it's pretty darn close.

Announcement Coming?

In case you didn't read the comments to the post below, it's being reported that sometime on Thursday the Wild will receive permission from the AHL to relocate the Aeros to Des Moines. 

I think we here at the blog are a bit talked out on the issue, having said lots the last several weeks when dealing with the rumors. And we'll be back with more for the playoffs. But for those of you who want to get a few things off your chest, have it.

Just a few caveats: keep it reasonably clean, and try not to say something too libelous, though, as the attorney, I guess that'll be for me to ultimately decide. And just one further note: if your comments are not approved right away, don't worry, we'll do our best to get around to it, but remember, it's late at night, we need to sleep, and we each have employment matters to deal with in the morning.

And we'll say this a few more times over what weeks remain: thanks so much for reading us over the years. We all sincerely appreciate it, and we'll miss you all.