Well, last night Eric Staal took a huge leap towards achieving that. Simply put, he dominated the game. In a game that was a must win for the Canes, the team played with desperation and played their game to perfection, with Staal epitomizing that.
Paul Maurice has continually harped on the need for back pressure, for the team to come up the ice fast as a five man unit and then, work from the circles down low. That is the Canes game and when they play that way, like last night, they can beat anyone in this league. So, what changed from Game 5?
There were several keys to last nights dominating victory.
1. Staal – He and his line-mates set the tone from the opening whistle, creating numerous quality scoring chances and equally as important, shutting down
2. What can you say about the Wizard, Ray Whitney? His goal, picking the puck out of mid-air, a deft move to say the least, got the Canes off and running and energized the Caniacs. He made a perfect pass on Staal’s second goal and feathered the puck through the crease to a wide open Jussi Jokinen, for the power-play goal that nailed the victory. Four points in the game, not a bad nights work.
3. Tim Gleason continues to quietly go about his business on the blue. He is among the hit leaders in the play-offs and of course, scored the overtime winner in Game 2. But, he is starting to silence the critics of the Jack Johnson trade with his heady play. He has been instrumental in shutting down Parise and his mates and was rock solid last night.
4. Cam Ward –
5. Caniacs – Paul Maurice pointed out after the game. “We got out of the gate, and a lot of it had to do with this building, it was rocking.” And Joe Corvo said in-between periods what the crowd was doing for the Canes. The Canaics had a good warm-up, tailgating from 4:30 on, so when the puck dropped, they were pumped!
I also want to mention Paul Maurice. I have to say that I have been very impressed with “Mo” since he returned. Like you, I was somewhat skeptical of the move and, of course when he re-joined the Canes, the the boo-birds were just waiting for him to fail. But, he continues to make smart moves with his line-up juggling and smart coaching decisions during the games. His decision to place Staal with Whitney and Larose was brilliant. Inserting Sergei Samsonov back into the line-up, with Brind’Amour and Eaves, made that line more effective. And his use of his energy line of Jokinen, Bayda, and Walker has affected the outcome of these recent games significantly. Yes, he has a talented coaching staff with Francis, Rowe and Barasso, but he is a calming influence, and leads by example.
Despite the outcome of last night’s game, there were still some areas for concern. Joni Pitkanen had a tough game taking two needless penalties and failing to shoot on a clear 2-on-1 break with Whitney. He needs to turn that around for Game 7. And Matt Cullen’s line, with Erik Cole and Tuomo Ruutu, struggled at times. Cole, in particular, missed a number of opportunities to clear the Canes zone, which could have led to quality scoring chances for the Devils. Cole is pointless in the series and if there was ever a time to break out, now is that time. Cullen is playing hurt and it shows.
So, what do the Canes have to do to win game seven and the series?
1. Score early to neutralize the hometown crowd and set the overall tone for the game.
2. Play their game. Hit hard and hit often. Stay on the offence, working from the circles down low. The best defence is a good offence.
3. Defensively, have the forwards creating back pressure to help out the defence. Keep it simple!
4. Shut down
5. Cam Ward has to out duel Marty Brodeur one more time.
This should be good. I can’t wait! Go Canes!!!!-
By Tom Ray
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