Gotta keep this brief because the real job beckons today (and I already managed to put that off with going ice skating and then watching the Aeros game).
The boys lost to the Marlies 4-2 after strong start with 2 first period goals (McMillan, Peters), but then letting the Marlies chop away at the score with 4 unanswered goals in the (2 PP) second and third periods.
But you could just see the drain in their play. Mistakes ahoy in the form of turnovers, penalties, even just falling down a bunch---tired puppies---and no mercy from Jamie Koharski with the whistle. Also none of that pesky need to "balance" the penalties either, as Earl was hauled down on what was for him an almost sure scoring opportunity with no call.
Oh well. The ol' coach will say don't blame the refs and don't blame the schedule. Sorry coach, I blame 'em both. Maybe I'm just feeling contrary. Sitting at my work computer on a Sunday evening does that to a girl.
It was a very nice streak of game points though, and racking up all 4 points Wednesday and Friday before taking a brief hiatus for the All Star break would bring back the good feelings.
Speaking of good feelings, Aeros PR rock star Rich Bocchini and Voice of the Aeros Joe O'Donnell are teaming up on a blog that's off to a great start: Pilot to Gunner.
Put it in your daily rotation because they're sure to have some great stuff from inside the belly of the Aeros beast. Not Chilly, but... metaphorically... well.. whatever. You know what I mean, right?
I was startled awake at 5 o'clock this morning from a dream that a black widow spider was jumping at me. And in the hour and a half I've been awake, my day has only gotten peachier.
So, here's hoping a depleted Aeros team can rescue the bad start to my day with a win over the Toronto Marlies tonight. That would be nice.
Just some updates to set the stage for tonight's international showdown:
Lots of injuries in Minnesota mean Wellman is still up. They sent Gillies back to Houston, but called up Matt Kassian in his place. And Cody Almond was the latest sacrifice to the NHL gods with a call-up yesterday.
This all kinda sucks for the Aeros. The Marlies are coming off a huge 6-1 win over San Antonio two nights ago. I was going to say they've been enjoying warm Texas weather for a few days, but really, it's been pretty cold since they got here, so.... neener.
That said, the Marlies are 3-6-0 at the bottom of the North division just like the Aeros are at the bottom of the West division, so it might actually end up being a really good match-up. Basement cat vs. Basement cat.
That said, I can't say when I've been happier about a guy making his NHL debut as Kassian will be doing tonight against Calgary. He just seems like one of the good guys to me. And he's been a good soldier for a lot of years in this organization. He's worked his way up the system, made improvements where he needed to in order to become a consistent contributor and not just a 3-minute-a-game enforcer.
I'm sure he sees the bold writing on the wall: That breed of hockey player is dying. You have to be able to play regular shifts now and contribute to the overall game.
And this call up is a nod to the effort he's put into rounding out his game. Here's an article from the Minneapolis Star-Tribune with some good quotes from him.
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Meanwhile, back at the ranch, a couple of links from me to you. First is a little bit on Carson McMillan who already has 5 points in 10 games after having only 8 points in 56 games last year. It would certainly provide some unexpected offense if he were to keep up that pace.
Second, my Pro Hockey News piece came out this week giving a wrap-up of the last (or should I say first) 10 games. You guys already know all that stuff because you read T3I (and thank you for that) but just in case you can't get enough about the Aeros, give 'er a look.
Here’s the deal. I’ve got a bad cold. Bad. Heather and Andrew will attest to the large amount of medication that I had sitting in front of me tonight -- as will one of my lucky readers who saw me at the Walgreens buying said medication. So let’s just say I was rather doped up for this game. And that doping up probably, more than anything, explains what I saw tonight.
Not only did the Aeros, at times, resemble a competent offensive team during tonight’s 5-2 Aeros win over the Toronto Marlies, but there were major offensive contributions from Matt Kassian and J.P. Testwuide. I had to imagine Kassian faking out a goalie and getting a goal on a good shot after a pass from Testwuide, right? That was all just part of my drug-induced imagination, right?
I guess not.
Talking to the players after the game, it was clear that they were not happy with what happened in Rockford. They thought the effort was there, but not the result. And tonight they were out to make sure the result matched their effort.
The first period was rather normal for the Aeros. They scratched a goal when Jean-Michel Daoust does what he does best. Be in the right place. This time in front of the goalie as he was able to get his stick on the puck and direct past Toronto’s starting goalie Joey MacDonald at 17:21 with assists from Nathan Smith and Max Noreau.
Then came the second period when the cold medication took hold of me. Matt Kassian got out on a breakaway, and with a pass from Testwuide he faked out MacDonald and got off a nice shot to put Houston up 2-0 at 2:12. Then Nathan Smith stuffed it in at 5:01 to make it 3-0, which brought about MacDonald’s removal in favor of Andrew Engelage. But just over two minutes later, Smith scored off of a rebound to make it 4-0.
At 17:19 of the third, with the Aeros on the penalty kill, Danny Irmen went flying down the ice with the puck. Testwuide followed, Irmen made a nice pass, and Testwuide got the goal to make the score 5-2.
The Aeros are now off for the All-Star break, and they will return to play on Friday when they play the first of two games in Abbotsford against the Heat.
SOME MISCELLANEOUS NOTES:
Thanks to the losses in Rockford, the Aeros had a bit of a free-fall in the standings. Milwaukee, at 24-13-1-4 (54 points) is in first. Texas, 23-13-2-4 (52 points) is in second. Rockford, thanks to Houston, is in third at 23-18-2-3 (51 points). Chicago at 23-16-0-2 and Peoria at 22-15-1-3 are tied for fourth with 48 points. Then comes Houston with a record of 20-17-6-1 (47 points).
The Aeros aren’t out of the playoff chase. But they know that the Rockford games hurt them, and they knew the importance of getting a win tonight.
“Obviously a big win for us,” Nathan Smith said. “We thought our effort deserved better than what it got on the road trip…take a look at our division and we need the points. Obviously a big win for us heading into the All-Star break.”
J.P. Testwuide agreed: “We went into Rockford, and we were doing a lot of things right. We realized that, but it was frustrating. We couldn’t get the goals. Their goalie stood on his head. There were all of these excuses that we had to kind of battle through. Tonight, it kind of paid off. It was a good win.”
But the win tonight is useless if the team doesn’t find a way to carry it over after the break.
“You always talk about points in November are important,” Kevin Constantine said. “But the reality is, as the season wears on you have less and less games to play, you’ve got less and less of a chance to catch up. We have to play catch up. That’s just the way it’s going to be here.”
**************** One thing this team needs, what with all of the injuries and call-ups, is for every player on the team to be making a contribution. Nathan Smith had two goals and an assist tonight, Jean-Michel Daoust had a power play goal, and Max Noreau threw in two assists. But it’s guys like Matt Kassian, with a goal, and J.P. Testwuide, with a goal and two assists, that the Aeros are going to need continuing contributions from if the team is to succeed.
“[Matt Kassian] has had his best month by far of his pro career in the last month,” Constantine said. “Two goals [this season]…he’s played the best hockey I’ve seen him play over the last month of his entire pro career….We’ve got so many banged up bodies and bodies gone to the Wild, that everybody has to contribute. Because we’re a not a team that’s going to depend on one or two guys to carry us.”
Constantine is hopeful of having Peter Zingoni, Andy Hilbert, and Jaime Sifers back from injuries when the team returns to play in Abbotsford on Friday, though it sounds as if Zingoni is the closest to returning. It will be big for the Aeros if they can start getting some of these guys back from injury. I can't remember when Zingoni last played, but I do remember that at the start of the season he was really meshing with rookies Cody Almond and Carson McMillan. He wasn't, however, sure of the extent of Jon DiSalvatore's injury.
**************** The Aeros just missed out on several hat tricks tonight. Nathan Smith was a goal short of the regular hat trick. And with his assist, he was a fight short of the Gordie Howe hat trick. Matt Kassian had a fight early in the first to go with his goal in the second, leaving him an assist short of the Gordie Howe. And Testwuide, with a goal and two assists was just a fight short of the Gordie Howe.
And it was the near Smith hat trick that got a joke out of Constantine which came about after Smith got 10 minutes on a misconduct call in the third.
“I don’t know what Smitty was doing, removing himself from that game for ten minutes at the end,” Constantine said. “I thought he was going to go for the hat trick, but I think he wanted the Gordie Howe hat trick instead.”
**************** Chad Rau got hit with a five minute major for boarding when he delivered a hit on Toronto’s Joe Ryan in the second period. Ryan was down on the ice for a long time, but the hit didn’t look to be intentional on Rau’s part.
“Take a look at Chad Rau’s stats,” Nathan Smith said. “And he’s not a guy who’s going to try and injure anybody.”
But after Carson McMillan’s four-game suspension earlier this month, it’s probably wise to wonder about what might become of Rau.
And this hit leads to my Douche Of The Game, which is the Toyota Center sound crew.
Seriously, when there’s a player down on the ice, and the medical staff is out on the ice working on said player, and his teammates are surrounding him and everybody is wondering about just how serious the injury is, you really SHOULDN’T be playing “The Chicken Dance.” You shouldn’t be playing any music, but especially not “The Chicken Dance.”
Try having some class for once.
And now that think about it, I'm kind of shocked that some of the people who roam the Toyota Center shouting into microphones during games didn't decide to start making some of their own contributions during that time.
**************** Since the Aeros were talking about everyone having to pitch in and help out, I thought it was only appropriate that I play The Beatles "With A Little Help From My Friends."
I love when guys who aren't supposed to score score. Even better when they start to make it a habit as Kassian and Testwuide seem to be doing. (No pressure, guys.)
What's funny is that the three guys pictured below were one event away from hat tricks: For a Gordie Howe hatty, Kassian just needed an assist and Testwuide just needed a fight.
For a real hat trick, Smith needed another goal (if he hadn't gotten himself that 10 minute ms.conduct, maybe he would have gotten it).
I'll be honest, when I went to the game tonight I was a) sure the Aeros were going to stink it up and b) didn't really want to be there. Last night's game was just so crappy, and then they spent the day traveling. Bleh.
But I guess one characteristic that held over from last season is a penchant for doing exactly what you think they won't.
Kudos (or is it Khudos?) to Dubie for bouncing back from a bad start in Rockford last night and looking sharp most of the night. That second goal was all goalie though. And I still contend that whatever superstitions he has, well, I want to know what they are for myself, because they freaking work. He is so lucky at times, I can't even believe it.
And now the boys head off for a little break, except for Noreau and Khudobin. Gotta point out that your all-star goalie isn't even your #1 goalie right now. Awkward.
Goalies are funny though. Last year, Brusty went to the All Star game in the midst of what was truly a crisis in his shootout performance and being sat a good bit in favor of Schaefer... and he shut all 6 shooters down in that portion of the skills competition.
So who knows. Those things just can't be much fun for goalies, but somehow I figure Anton will have fun anyway. Represent, boys!
Schedule-wise, December is going to be very kind to the Aeros. Eight of their next 10 will be at home, and the two road games will be played inside Texas (one at San Antonio and one at Texas).
The Aeros team that I thought would be lucky to win one of their three road games last week, just took two of three and has points in four straight overall. They are all alone in second place in the West division and have pulled within eight points of the Texas Stars.
Back to the OT win in Toronto. The win was filled with character and all sorts of fun warm fuzzies that should make you feel good about being an Aeros fan this morning.
Chad Rau scored an incredible goal to give the team a 1-0 lead in the second, but the Marlies tied things up with a goal in the third, a period they pretty much dominated.
Wade Dubielewicz was sharp when he had to be, and he was the topic of conversation after the game. Seems the Aeros felt bad for the guy, and not being able to, as Kevin Constantine said after the game, "give him much run support."
Dubielewicz won his first game since that amazing comeback shootout win over Hamilton on Oct. 27 at Toyota Center. Since then, a span of six games, the Aeros' backup has done nothing but allow two goals or fewer. And his goals against average has fallen from 2.77 to a very solid 2.18.
His November numbers are impressive. Sure, he had just the one victory. But his GAA for the month was 1.60 with a .932 saves percentage. Those are in line with what Anton Khudobin has put up all year.
"He played great in the third," said Constantine. "He gave up a goal, but he was really solid. That is what we needed. He has played really well this year, but we just have not been able to get a win for him. So I am sure just getting a win feels great for him personally."
I, and each of my colleagues that cover the Aeros, have been critical of Dubielewicz' play this season. There always seems to be an in-game let down. A lack of concentration that leads to the dreaded softie. As anyone who follows this team knows, one softie spells death with this offensively devoid hockey club.
But, despite the lazy play at times, and despite the ego hit of going to potential backup in Minnesota to rarely-used backup in the AHL, he attitude has been incredible. He cheers them on from the bench, pays attention to the game, and has been very solid when he's had to jump in and take over for the rare Anton bomb.
Constantine said it better.
"I did not know him as a goaltender and a person prior to this year. But now, from a leadership and character standpoint, he has been absolutely flawless," added Constantine. "He has had such a positive attitude, and he is very vocal. He is actually very astute on the game when he is on the bench.
"As a backup goalie, he is talking to the guys on the bench about what is going on on the ice. He sees the game like coach. He has been fantastic that way, and he has been a good goalie too. We just have not been able to get any wins for him. He has been great the whole year."
Miscellaney ...
The Aeros were able to save a crap load of money by flying to Detroit and then busing to Hamilton, and then to Syracuse and then to Toronto in the middle of the night for the Saturday game against the Marlies.
Constantine said the Aeros will bus back to Detroit Sunday (today) and then fly home Monday. The team will get the rest of that day off before getting back to work Tuesday in advance of the team's home and home series against San Antonio.
The Aeros should get a little more information this week on a few key players out with injuries.
"Right now, we don’t know exactly where guys like Testwuide, Hilbert and Almond are," said Constantine. "I would guess that Hilbert is the closest at this point. Hopefully Andy is back this week, but it might be a couple of weeks before we get the other guys back."
I then joking asked Kevin if he and the coaching staff prays before every Wild game because of the big club's horrendous luck with injuries this year.
"That is right because we really need them healthy too. It really does affect us," said Constantine. "Hopefully no one else gets hurt up there."
Here's the goods from theAHL.com on the assignment of Flames associate coach Jim Playfair as the head coach of the Abbotsford Heat.
The quote that amused me was:
“I am looking forward to stepping back behind the bench as the head coach,” noted Playfair. “My goal is to create an identity both on and off of the ice for our players, the fans and for the City of Abbotsford. Abbotsford will be a difficult place for our opponents to play.”
Uh, yeah because it's two time zones away and way out in BFE.
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In related-but-opposite news, Toronto Maple Leafs Overlord Brian Burke announced that he's not renewing the contract of Marlies head coach Greg Gilbert.
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