Big Ol' Jet Lag: Your Delayed Wrap of Blues 3 - Hawks 2
by SamFels on Feb 4, 2010 1:47 PM CST
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Stood to reason that after I pointed out that the Hawks had been very good at the first home game after a long road trip the past two seasons, they would then throw in a clunker last night. And so it came to pass. The Hawks were good for the first 10 minutes, took the next 30 off, and by the time they brought what is now the customary 3rd period siege, it was too late. It's too late, it always has been, it always will be.
The Hawks generated a couple chances in the opening exchanges, with Hossa and Sharp combining on yet another 2-on-1. Does this happen every game now? And though Hossa's haul of 16 goals in his shortened season is more than satisfactory, how many would he have if he hadn't missed innumerable odd man rushes this year? Anyway, another discussion for another day. Kane opened the scoring after a shot block by Yossarian (Troy Brouwer). It was pretty obvious Kane had to go the backhand with pressure coming from the back and to the left (back, and to the left. Back, and to the left), but he was still able to beat Mason high.
After that, the Hawks pretty much like my car trying to start on a cold day. It was kind of a "meh" feeling. Sloppy breakouts, far too many attempts at the Hollywood pass, turnovers galore, losing battles along the boards, it was a buffet of ugliness (which some people have called this blog). It came to bite them in the ass in the 2nd. After actually creating a turnover in the Blues zone, Buff tried to pass a puck through two Blues, and it rebounded back into the Hawks zone. Keith went after it as if he were just taking out the garbage, fired a very lazy and careless pass behind the net that never had a chance of rebounding to Seabrook, where they both chased Kariya behind the net allowing David Backes enough space that any reader of this blog could have scored from.
After Huet came up with a big save on Paul Vagina's breakaway, one would have thought the Hawks would gain some momentum from that. But, as Brick Top told us, thinking can get you into trouble, I wouldn't do so much of it. On a Blues power play, it looked as though Toews lost track of Backes, who fired one that deflected off of Seabrook and past the goalie from Gaul.
But it gets better! I didn't realize until reading the Feather and watching the replay that Ladd was in on a 3-on-1, and surely should have tried a pass to either Sharp or Bolland, better snipers than he is. But he went for glory, missed, and back down they went. Not content with just a minor miscue, Ladd went for the full-blown fuck up. Yet another attempt at a Hollywood pass to a streaking Sharp, with only three Blues in the way, was picked off and McClement was on hand to tip in a blast from Roman Polak.
Though the Hawks got within one after a total shorthanded work of art from Toews and Hossa, and then Mason made a very big save on Ladd, it wasn't to be.
Observations
-There's a part of me that rejoices when the Hawks lose to an inferior team (yes, Blues fans, you're an inferior team, and you know it) by not playing anything close to resembling a full 60 minutes. There's no clearer way to learn that lesson.
-Duncan Keith apparently has caught whatever Seabrook has. The only silver lining is it makes it more likely for a hilarious collapse by Canada in Vancouver. There's little chance this blip in from lasts that long while they're in our sweater.
-Tomas Kopecky had a breakaway on a beautiful feed from Eager, and managed to not get a shot off. That won't help in the I-Don't-Wanna-Get-Scratched Derby that he, Fraser, Buff, and others are now participating in.
-Still haven't seen Kris Versteeg.
-Once again, the numbers aren't pretty for Huet. 3 goals on 19 shots. But there was nothing he could do about any of the goals, and he even made some big saves on Kariya and McDonald. Huet and Niemi are facing the problem of they are still not facing a lot of shots, but the ones they do get are uncovered from 10 feet out or coming through unchecked screeners in front. These defensive breakdowns and turnovers are not allowing the Hawks to get in shooting lanes or to tie up sticks in front, and it really must stop.
-Then again, it's the Doldrums of the season. Anybody really worried?
Player of the Game
It hurts to admit, but this shirt is so awesome we have to put it here.
Oh, also here's last night's Committed Indian front-page cartoon, because we're proud of it:
Have a nice road trip, John?
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Tough game to watch
…and unfortunately I had a pretty good seat to see it up close and personal.
Kane’s goal was, of course, awesome. But after that it was obvious that the intensity of the team really ebbed. I don’t know if it was because scoring the first goal in such a big way got into the heads of the Hawks that the game was going to be a cakewalk or what, but if anything it really lit a fire under the Blues, who had control of the game for most of the next two periods. Sloppy defense, poor decision-making on offense, the Kopecky travesty of a breakway, etc., etc.
I thought Huet did very well last night – the PP goal was his weakest, but the other two were just great plays, and taking advantage of horrible defensive lapses. Huet made two awesome toe saves late. But as I"ve posted before, the Hawks just can’t rely on the goaltending to cover up defensive mistakes. Neither one is that good, or hasn’t shown it recently anyway.
Looking forward to the PHX game – back in my 302 seats.
"...about six feet from the moose's butt."
by The Fearless Freep on Feb 4, 2010 1:58 PM CST reply actions
I'm more pissed off
about not getting a bobblehead than I am about the game, truthfully. I got to the UC about 15 minutes after gates opened—there’s no WAY they run out that early, right? Well, I got F’d in the A on timing, because they’d just run out of their current stock, and were scrambling to get another load to my gate. APPARENTLY, if you get inside the gate when this is happening, you are not allowed to hang around while they restock and get the thing you rightfully arrived at the arena early-as-fuck for. I wandered around and saw people getting bobbleheads at other gates, but of course they’re not going to give you one if you didn’t go through that gate.
The same thing happened to me in December, with the Winter Classic beanies. I’m clearly doing something wrong. Or I’m on some sort of UC freebie blacklist. AAAAAAGH.
Okay, I’m cool now.
I have a theory...
…that the gate at the east end by the Jordan statue runs out last. Not sure though.
in that case,
I blame Sam, since I always go to the Madison Ave. gate now to buy a CI from him before entering.
by gmh on Feb 4, 2010 8:54 PM CST up reply actions
buffet of ugliness
tastes damn good to me, please keep serving it up!
Revenge is a very very very dangerous motivation!
by thepuckstopshere on Feb 4, 2010 2:06 PM CST reply actions
The last 5 times the Hawks have allowed 20 or more shots and Huet has been in net
They have lost all 5 games with Huet having a save percentage of .790. So basically the defense has to be PERFECT come April if they want the cup, that or score at least 5 a game.
Lets Go Hawks!
31 times Huet has been in net when the Hawks have allowed 20+ SOG
Record is 20-8-3. But sure, by all means, use the 5 games out of 82 that support your outrageous conclusory statement.
I can't wait for March 4
I’ll know by then whether I should continue to watch the Hawks. Clearly no new goalie = no Cup.
SCH Resident Idiot
The only Cup we can win is this years
DON'T START IT!
Ok, you did. Who would you like to see and more importantly who is available?
Revenge is a very very very dangerous motivation!
by thepuckstopshere on Feb 4, 2010 2:28 PM CST up reply actions
I would like to see Kate Beckinsale. I don’t think she is available though
SCH Resident Idiot
The only Cup we can win is this years
Never heard of her before
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kate_Beckinsale
Revenge is a very very very dangerous motivation!
by thepuckstopshere on Feb 4, 2010 3:12 PM CST up reply actions
Not helpful
Setting up strawmen and knocking them down doesn’t really add anything.
But if the Hawks get the goaltending they’ve had lately and still win it, I for one would be amazed.
It’s still very realistic to hope Huey and/or Niemi play well enough to win it, but this scenario seems less likely to me than it did a couple weeks ago. Stay tuned.
This has to be the only NHL blog where 19 SOG constitutes a defensive meltdown.
I don't think.......
that SOG is really that much of an indicator of a teams quality of play in a given game.
If your opponent only gets a relative handful of SOG (say around 20 as the Hawks generally allow), but many of them are of the “prime scoring chance” type due to poor defensive play, it sets up your goaltending to look very poor, when in fact it was the teams overall play that probably cost a victory.
I feel all the angst over the goal tending position individually (or any one position or player) is wasted energy, as all the contributing factors to any win or loss have to be considered as a whole in any team sport.
Just my opinion.
You presume correctly sir.
Stats make my head hurt and my eyes water. (Kinda like beer & tequila)
The only stats I worry about are W & L.
goaltending
is on a bit of a cold streak right now. But we’ve seen goalies have an up and down season till April and the catch a hot streak. I was just responding to the sky is falling rant by Cubsball. This team has been one of the best in the league all year.
Are there some defensive/scoring/goalie issues now? Yes, but they have time left to straighten them out internally. I don’t see another team out there that the Hawks team is not as good as.
SCH Resident Idiot
The only Cup we can win is this years
I generally agree....
…not on the ledge by any means, but I did crack the window open. Maybe the fresh air will help.
my expierence from '05
changed my outlook. I was so concerned about every little thing I didn’t enjoy the season as much as I could have. And it’s not like we can do a damm thing about anything other than gripe.
SCH Resident Idiot
The only Cup we can win is this years
out of curiosity
how WAS the 2005 season for you?
Tweets @ChiBlackhawks and blogs at Blackhawks Down Low.
by chiblackhawks on Feb 5, 2010 12:26 PM CST up reply actions
absolute joy and amazment before the all-star break. Then it “got serious” and from Aug till the last out gut-wrenching anxiety. Every pitch, every swing of the bat was life-or-death. It was more a relief than happines when it was all over.
Which is why I’m sitting back and poking fun at people that are getting so twisted up about everything. I want to enjoy the seasons.
SCH Resident Idiot
The only Cup we can win is this years
'05? I recall nothing opf sginificance that year.
…sage advice though, Zen master, even if you are a Sox fan.
The hilarious collapse that (sadly, ultimately) wasn’t could not have been fun from the inside.
Ask yourself
Do they win because of Huet or in spite of him? The team defense has been taken to a new level this year which is why they are winning games. However, what happens come April if the defense has a game like last night, do you really think Huet can bail them out? This is the best Hawks team I’ve seen in my lifetime, all they really need is somone competent in net who they can play with confidence in front of, that or really beef up the defense, offense is not a problem.
Lets Go Hawks!
Competent = average.
Huet = average. Niemi = average.
Who the fuck cares?
I was going to lay out an argument why no one should give a fuck, but who the fuck cares? Honestly, who the fuck cares? Worry on your own goddamn time. Bring up the Huet shits on your own goddamn time. Because who the fuck cares? If they crash out of the playoffs without even smelling Game 6 of the WCF, then maybe I’ll care. But I’ll be too drunk to give a fuck.
So, who the fuck cares? It’s goddamned February, maybe the worst month known to man. It’s like fucking July in baseball season. Who the fuck cares about Huet?
All right, come on, dummy, you won the game. Come on. Pick up your trophy.
Sometimes, when you get home from work
and you’re tired, maybe you had a rough day, the boss riding your tail (“Where’s that TPS report? Can you come in on Saturday? You make a mockery of American ingenuity!”), and you see some Huet bashing going on from a guy who joined today, the fucks start rolling and they don’t stop.
All right, come on, dummy, you won the game. Come on. Pick up your trophy.
Not saying they weren't justified.
Just commenting on the impressive quantity. Shitty days must be contagious today. Bumpy airplane rides = work misery.
"To the BeeMobile!"
"You mean your Chevy?"
"...yes."
I can't even begin to imagine
My day wasn’t all that shitty, and my boss isn’t actually horrible. In fact, a few of us went out for lunch and we were regaled with stories of whorehouses. I was just tired after listening to that for hours and measuring my own self-worth as a man against it.
Do you fly planes, or are you a controller on the ground?
All right, come on, dummy, you won the game. Come on. Pick up your trophy.
I wish my bosses talked about whorehouses.
I’m a controller, and the FAA is about a humorless employer as you could think of. I work in the radar facility in Aurora, and the only jokes I get are state-sponsored.
"To the BeeMobile!"
"You mean your Chevy?"
"...yes."
by AirTrafficAJ on Feb 4, 2010 10:45 PM CST up reply actions
I just moved to Aurora last year. Are there any good bars to watch a game at? My wife’s always been pretty cool about watching sports with me, but I think I’m driving her nuts this year with the compacted hockey schedule.
Well, folks, I want to thank you for being here for the recording of my live comedy album. Funny material and laughter will be dubbed in later.
by ChicagoNativeSon on Feb 4, 2010 11:07 PM CST up reply actions
There is a good sports bar
In St. Charles, about 10 minutes north of Aurora called Real Time Sports. Lots of beer choices, great hot wings, and a million TV’s. Other than that, you’d be better off going to a BWW.
"To the BeeMobile!"
"You mean your Chevy?"
"...yes."
by AirTrafficAJ on Feb 5, 2010 11:04 AM CST up reply actions
on the SW side of the mall outbuildings
is a place called The Foundry. I was there to watch a Bears game and it was pretty good; the food was decent. Never been there to watch the Hawks though. The place is freakin huge.
As much as it sucks for you, I’m kind of glad to hear that the FAA is humorless.
All right, come on, dummy, you won the game. Come on. Pick up your trophy.
I guess I see your point.
"To the BeeMobile!"
"You mean your Chevy?"
"...yes."
by AirTrafficAJ on Feb 5, 2010 11:05 AM CST up reply actions
Fair enough...
…but it seems like an overreaction. This guy’s comments may be right or wrong, but they aren’t outlandishly dickheaded like some noobs.
We all have bad days and like to vent though. Secretly, though, I suspect anti-Cubs hostility here.
Whatever - anti-Cubs hostility? faugh
Sorry if it came off as an overreaction. It was more venting, and trying to be humorously over-the-top. I was pretty ambivalent towards the whole post.
All right, come on, dummy, you won the game. Come on. Pick up your trophy.
It was a childish gibe on my part...
…I just hate seeing new guys get their ass handed to them unless they’re out of bounds.
No, you're right
I should have given him the benefit of the doubt. See what a few cocktails can do? The cause of, and solution to, all of life’s problems.
All right, come on, dummy, you won the game. Come on. Pick up your trophy.
With Kopecky, at least
There is a clear in-house upgrade that costs nothing. Furthermore, no one defends Kopecky.
I was critiquing the logic...
…when you posit the team as the only yardstick, you forfeit the ability to evaluate any indiviudal critically.
This sentiment is right on in the locker room, but not at the orginizational level.
Short of an absolute disaster of a game from a goalie
several people contribute to giving up goals and losing games. Maybe one guy blows it in OT so you could actually pin a loss on him, but there were likely other opportunities to turn a game in your favor that other players missed out on too.
I just don’t htink it’s ever really one guy’s fault if you win or lose a team sport.
that reminds me of an excerpt from Outliers
Plane crashes rarely happen in real life the same way they happen in the movies. Some engine part does not explode in a fiery bang. The rudder doesn’t suddenly snap under the force of takeoff. […] Plane crashes are much more likely to be the result of an accumulation of minor difficulties and seemingly trivial malfunctions.
[…] The typical accident involves seven consecutive human errors. One of the pilots does something wrong that by itself is not a problem. Then one of them makes another error on top of that, which combined with the first error still does not amount to catastrophe. But then they make a third error on top of that, and then another and another and another and another, and it is the combination of all those errors that leads to disaster.
These seven errors, furthermore, are rarely problems of knowledge or flying skill. […] The kinds of errors that cause plane crashes are invariably errors of teamwork and communication.
Obviously, goals against aren’t as huge as plane crashes, but I thought it was slightly relevant to the point some people are trying to make.
Tweets @ChiBlackhawks and blogs at Blackhawks Down Low.
by chiblackhawks on Feb 4, 2010 8:14 PM CST up reply actions
Not so obvious
GAA can be as huge as plane crashes. I think you may not really be a hockey fan.
2009 SCH Post Whore
2010 Troll Collector
SCH's Resident Mom
Catfight!
But, seriously, chiblackhawks, you’re starting to sound like our friend Air Traffic.
All right, come on, dummy, you won the game. Come on. Pick up your trophy.
Odd
That this would come up after we were discussing our professions earlier. The quote she posted is described by us as an “error chain”. Break one link in the chain, and disaster is averted.
Like, say, Duncan Keith not half-asssing a pass to Seabs that didn’t have a prayer of reaching him. Break that link, and toolbox Backes doesn’t get a freebie.
"To the BeeMobile!"
"You mean your Chevy?"
"...yes."
by AirTrafficAJ on Feb 5, 2010 11:08 AM CST up reply actions
error chains
are important in my line of work too: engineering. they’re pesky little killers.
luckily, dunc half-assing it to the puck, then half-assing the pass to seabs, then skating to the half-assed pass didn’t leave anyone dead.
All right, come on, dummy, you won the game. Come on. Pick up your trophy.
Critiquing of individual play......
is absolutley necessary for the organization to make personnel decisions.
I think what frustrates the Huet defenders about the Huet critics is that the critics seem to pin the responsibility for every shitty loss on Huet (is there really such a thing as a ‘good’ loss. I personally think the concept is bullshit, but I digress).
They will point to the ‘soft’ goals he gave up and assign sole blame for the loss on them. The defenders say, “wait, what about those 5 or 6 great stops he made. Don’t those count?” OR “what about that 2 on 1 where we didn’t even hit the net” or “…that 2 on 1 where we didn’t even get a shot on goal”. Don’t those fuck ups cost a game just as much as the goal tending gaffes.
It seems as if the critics think that if we could magically swap Huet out for Broduer or Luongo or any of the other ‘saviors’ they would like to see here, they would never see another soft goal or shitty loss again, and that just ain’t so.
Again, just my opinion.
and I agree
I feel that People find nothing else to endlessly rant about. I’ve grown tried of it, but still defend Huet, not just here but at work or to people who basically watch highlights and enjoy pissing me off. I think I mainly support b/c he is on our team and we want him to succeed. Do I think he could play better…well i shouldnt really have to answer that, but do I blame EVERY FUCKING thing on him? No. There Have been mis communication turnovers, dumb turnovers, sloppy play in the offensive and defensive zone. However I do think things will get tighter. Since we have been spoiled by a team in 2nd in the west there has to be this one issue.
I’m along for the ride and have been and I would love to see this team go as far as I know they can (wont say it) and I know they need to play the full 60 but there is still quite a bit of hockey left. I have seen a few ups and downs in my time (only 27) but I’m just having fun. But w/ expectations so high we have to pick at every little thing. Huet and the D will be fine. When this team plays to there potential and the full game there are not many teams that can compete.
Still a long way to go, but i don’t feel bringing another at this moment is going to change anything. Just get back to playing hockey and not “taking the foot off the gas”.
Yes, they win with Huet and the others
but I’m pretty sure they send Kopecky off into a corner during all team celebrations
Well, folks, I want to thank you for being here for the recording of my live comedy album. Funny material and laughter will be dubbed in later.
by ChicagoNativeSon on Feb 4, 2010 6:48 PM CST up reply actions
Incidentally...
The Hawks have lost four out of the last five whenever they fire 40+ shots against opposing goalies. Clearly the forwards should stop shooting if they want the Cup. It’s the only way
Or maybe correlation != causation, and statistics can be manipulated to say strange things…. nah. Obvs it’s Huet’s fault.
by spokeinthebandwagon on Feb 4, 2010 2:32 PM CST up reply actions
Or maybe the other goalie is actually stealing a game for his team despite a poor defensive effort.
Most of the Hawks poor defensive efforts lately still result in 20 shots or less. It’d be nice if he can get back into his December groove only allowing 1 or 2 consistently on 20 or less, really shouldn’t be too hard with one of, if not, the league’s best defense in front of you.
Lets Go Hawks!
Anyone watching the telecast notice
how Bowman immediately spoke about goaltending during his interview? He said it’s been there all season. Apparently, he reads all the Huet hate and feels the need to defend him.
2 things:
1) I think Edzo described a play as “fantastically fantastic”. That is horribly horrible.
2) I want to nail Sarah Kostok. I don’t care how many hawks players already have, I would like to hit that.
@ #2
Don’t forget she does the bulls too.. so she probably has more miles on here then you think.
It's THE GOAALLLIEEE!!!!!
Tell HER,
don’t suck it or fuck it but you can jack it!
Revenge is a very very very dangerous motivation!
by thepuckstopshere on Feb 4, 2010 3:02 PM CST up reply actions
I don't get it
Huet gets blamed for goals off of unforced errors by the hawks in their own zone? Not saying a bunch of people here are still beating that horse but it seems like overall huet still gets crap for every save he doesn’t make. Games like this are why you can’t bring up huet’s SV% and say he sucks. I agree games like this are good for the hawks. If they don’t bring it they need to lose so they learn a lesson. I’d rather have them try to half ass it against st louis and lose during the regular season than get away with it now and end up half assing a game here and there during the playoffs. Play like that = a loss in the first round. I bet over at SLGT they’re predicting a blues central division win for next year. They would even have a chance at the cup but like half of their players are going to be worn out from being in the all star game.
They brought their fuckin' TOYS with 'em!
by ZootSuitZombie on Feb 4, 2010 2:28 PM CST reply actions 1 recs
Well said
I don’t understand how people can complain about Huet from that game but NOT tell us which of those goals he should have stopped. Please someone explain that to me.
If people want Niemi to start, cool. Say your piece. I like the guy, I just don’t see it as an upgrade
by ChargingMajor on Feb 5, 2010 10:05 AM CST up reply actions
When is the last tme the Hawks lost 4 out of 7 games?
A stretch at the end of October and the last 7.
These are not however against the same team.
Who’s gonna beat the Hawks 4 out of 7?
Eddie Vancouver? Danny Sharks? Jerome Flamer? Martin devil? Sidney penguin? Alex Capital?
I think no one beats the Hawks 4 of 7.
"All questions must be submitted in writing"
Time will tell
the Yotes have been howling lately. Sit back, relax and strap it down for Friday night!
Revenge is a very very very dangerous motivation!
by thepuckstopshere on Feb 4, 2010 2:45 PM CST up reply actions
in warning, this is incomplete data
The inverse correlation of shots against to save percentage has been on my mind lately. Behind the Net and SCH have both put up posts about it, and the conclusion has been that shots against aren’t necessarily a factor in save percentages.
But there are people who believe that goalies that don’t face many shots get “cold” after a while and begin to lose focus. Some of them have played in goal in the past, too.
I guess my theory here is that maybe not all goalies are built the same way—that some need to face more shots to stay in the moment while others don’t. And if that’s the case, then it’s possible that the data from BtN and SCH was inconclusive because goalies weren’t studied individually—instead, all the stats were taken as a whole. The assumption that all goalies function the same way may not have been correct.
For what it’s worth, I went through Huet’s career stats (until Jan 28, 2010) and this is what I got:
SA -—— Ave Sv % - GAA—- 0.953
45+ --—— 2.250
40-44 - 0.944 -——- 2.333
35-39 - 0.929 -——- 2.615
30-34 - 0.922 -——- 2.450
25-29 - 0.911 -——- 2.362
20-24 - 0.906 -——- 2.087
15-19 - 0.886 -——- 2.000
10-14 - 0.850 -——- 1.830
From this data, his average GAA is 2.29 and his average SV% is 0.911
I’ll be the first to say I have no idea what this is telling me—the save percentage trends perfectly downward, though the GAA doesn’t really tell me much (unless other people can tell me something from it)—but I would be interested to see what other goalies’ numbers are like. Is it normal for the SV% to trend downward with fewer shots against or not? Will clearer patterns emerge when other goalies are studied? I don’t really know. It’d be interesting to find out, even if only so I can let this go.
Tweets @ChiBlackhawks and blogs at Blackhawks Down Low.
wtf random strikethroughs
Should have previewed. Argh. Anyway, I’m pretty sure you can still read that.
Tweets @ChiBlackhawks and blogs at Blackhawks Down Low.
by chiblackhawks on Feb 4, 2010 2:39 PM CST up reply actions
So we now know what Holmstrom looks like out of uniform.
"To the BeeMobile!"
"You mean your Chevy?"
"...yes."
to be honest
I think the team a goalie plays on affects his numbers almost as much as his individual performance. One of the eternal questions of the hockey world (which will probably never get answered) revolves around whether Martin Brodeur would have been as successful had he not played behind the Devils’ trap game all these years. Likewise, look at the steep drop in the stat lines of Backstrom and Harding, once the Wild ran screaming from Lemaire’s trap and toward (ostensibly) a more high-tempo game. Not only are they facing more shots, but the entire character of the game in front of them has changed, somewhat dramatically.
There are also different game situations that would lead to high or low numbers of shots: If the team in front of a goalie basically throws everyone into the rush, and they control a majority of the game, but give up a handful of breakaways or odd-man rushes, it’s not really the same as if they had played the trap, you know? Same thing with high-volume games, it could either be back-and-forth the whole 60 minutes, or the teams could have traded a large number of PP opportunities, or whatever else. The numbers don’t really tell the whole story, although we’d like them to.
I’m not sure how the Canadiens played in front of Huet, whether they were as strong defensively as the ’Hawks are now, etc., but if he did spend many seasons looking at 30 shots a game, but with a defense that tried to take out guys standing in front of the net, then coming to Chicago and playing behind a puck possession team that leaves the Holmstrom/Smyth types alone (after a season of not being the starter), it could mean a bit of culture shock for a 34-year-old butterfly goalie.
Clearly I’m not a goaltending expert, but the position intrigues me more than any other in the game, so until we figure out exactly what’s going on, I say we just keep trucking’.
by gmh on Feb 4, 2010 2:57 PM CST up reply actions
agreed
There are many different circumstances that influence these numbers, so short of the work that the guy over at Habs Eyes on the Prize did, it’s hard to draw conclusions one way or another. But people are so quick to blame the goalie for what is the result of a team game, sigh.
Tweets @ChiBlackhawks and blogs at Blackhawks Down Low.
by chiblackhawks on Feb 4, 2010 3:08 PM CST up reply actions
hey, I've got an idea
gmh just got the fancy new computer, and is obviously good with statistics…perfect time to put that machine to work and recreate that Habs Eyes on the Prize study for the Hawks!
Whatcha think?
by K_Dog on Feb 4, 2010 3:23 PM CST up reply actions 2 recs
"obviously good with statistics"
kind of like how Tomas Kopecky is obviously good with breakaways.
by gmh on Feb 4, 2010 3:25 PM CST up reply actions
rec'd
there’d be no arguing from gmh once it’s green, amirite?
Tweets @ChiBlackhawks and blogs at Blackhawks Down Low.
by chiblackhawks on Feb 4, 2010 3:31 PM CST up reply actions
Sheesh. People wanting $50 for something they got for free
and other people are actually paying that price. That’s crazy.
The power play is still f**king clown shoes
Everybody...HIT SOMEBODY! ~ the Chicago Rush are back in April 2010
also
I’m not sure how valuable a head-to-head comparison between Huet and Niemi would be at this point—
1. Niemi’s NHL starts can still be counted on fingers and toes.
2. The Habs’ goalie situation is actually much more competitive than ours, no matter what the Huet bashers want to claim. Not many people (I hope) are seriously vouching for Niemi to take over the starting job right now.
That being said, it might be interesting to compile Huet’s stats by themselves in order to evaluate his game.
by gmh on Feb 4, 2010 3:41 PM CST up reply actions
I like it
Do Huet to Huet and then later, if/when Niemi has a large enough sample size, you can plug his numbers into your model.
The one thing that would be really difficult, but I think would be really important in Huet’s case especially, is to somehow factor in %fault for each goal. Sure, the goalie is somewhat responsible for nearly all goals (except ENG’s of course), but to a varying degree based on the defensive support or lack thereof. It also depends on the level of skill the attacker utilized to make the goal. Obviously these are subjective measurements and would require careful examination of each and every GA. Yuck.
dude over at the Habs blog
actually did that (rating goals allowed as good/bad/iffy), as well as come up with a model for where goals tend to be scored on each goalie, which I think is valuable. so it would take some work, but it’s not such a horrendous task.
by gmh on Feb 4, 2010 8:49 PM CST up reply actions
SOG vs. Quality Chances
One of the things the numbers don’t account for is quality chances (which you mention above,). My observation is that the Hawks seem to give up as many quality chancs whether they allow 35 shots/game or 15. Again, that is strictly my observation, but it tends to support the GAA numbers chiblackhawks posted that trend perfectly downward. Last night one could argue that STL scored on almost half of their quality chances. I’m not sure what it all means either—should we excoriate the goaltenders for not making enough “big” saves or should we worry about Dunc’s drop-passes to no one? The latter makes me more squinchy (no, not just Keith of course), but I am at a loss to explain exactly why.
I've had this same thought about quality chances
which pretty much means nothing except I think you could be on to something.
It seems likely
but, and I’ve asked this before on different game threads, how much of our reaction to this team is because these boys are the only ones we’ve seen play 40 or 50 times this year? For instance: does our goaltending situation strike us as especially dire because it really is, or because we just don’t know what it’s like to watch a Stanley Cup-winning season (to differentiate it from a play-off run at the end of the season).
Few of us have watched a truly great team during a truly great season before. Maybe Detroit fans the last two years had the same gripes? I honestly don’t know, and I would really like to hear from people who have been around hockey/the world longer than I have been.
All right, come on, dummy, you won the game. Come on. Pick up your trophy.
I feel like the only untouchable goalies in the league are Lundqvist, Miller & Brodeur
Even Luongo gets knocked around some. Over in Boston, there’s a goalie controversy brewing between Thomas and Rask—and Thomas won the Vezina just last year.
Tweets @ChiBlackhawks and blogs at Blackhawks Down Low.
by chiblackhawks on Feb 4, 2010 8:16 PM CST up reply actions
From what I recall on the wings site last year, a percentage of the posters were calling for Osgoods head most of the year. That’s probably why the bitching I have seen about Huet/Niemi/Bleargh this year is so tiring to me.
/Note unceasing sarcastic laughter in background.
by burpchelischili on Feb 4, 2010 11:14 PM CST up reply actions
HAHA
then it’s not going to make it any easier since Osgood and the Winged Wheels lost in the Stanley cup Finals
September 26, 2007 The day a Franchise was reborn.
Osgood did a good job, but but in my opinion, the team was completely gassed. They did run Sodomy Crysby and crew for a complete series. Was impressive considering they had an average age of 264 or so.
/Note unceasing sarcastic laughter in background.
by burpchelischili on Feb 6, 2010 1:04 AM CST up reply actions
The GAA also trends downward
If you take out the 40+ SA, which would (I’m guessing here) not be that many games.
Or, he’s just awesomely awesome when he sees more than 40 shots a game, and then just goes to average goalie mode if there are less than that.
2009 SCH Post Whore
2010 Troll Collector
SCH's Resident Mom
It's simple math isn't it?
Since SV% is calculated according to shots, the lower the number of shots faced, the more impact 1 goal against will have. The GAA is a “per game” statistic, so 1 goal per 60 minutes is still just one goal, no matter how many shots were taken. Mathematically speaking, your chart is exactly what one would expect.
What the math here doesn’t tell us is the quality of shots—screens, tip-ins, 2-on-1 breaks, etc.
Blues played to their game plan
They really did well and you have to tip your cap to them. Even in the first they were spending a lot of time in our end other than the two odd man breaks where we caught their D pinching. By the third they pretty much just defended their own zone and kept the Hawks to the outside. They took advantage of their chances and then were content to play defense and were willing to allow themselves to get outshot by about a 2-1 margin. That seems to be the recipe for how to beat the Hawks this year.
I saw some of the Blues fans come over here and try to claim that this means they can skate with the Hawks. That’s not what I saw. They played very well and executed their game plan, which is something in and of itself, but their game plan was clearly a realistic one in that they didn’t attempt to beat the Hawks at their own game, they just accepted that the Hawks could impose their will at any time and the Blues were determined to hunker down and live through it.
Kopecky has had a lot of bad games, but this one was glaringly bad at the wrong time. He’s got a big frame that he never uses and he seems to be in the right place to create chances on a regular basis but he has such bad hands that he can never control a pass or turn a dangerous situation into something deadly. Other than wanting to limit Bolland’s minutes early in his comeback and needing to put him in the 4th line center spot, I don’t see how Kopecky is preferrable to Fraser from here on out.
Kane sure loves that backhand. The angle of the defense may have forced him to it last night, but how have the scouts and the opposing goalies not picked up on this yet? This is a pattern in the same way that the Marlboro Man was a smoker. Sooner or later somebody has got to pick up on this, but in the meantime I guess we’ll take the free goals.
Kopecky's breakaway no-shot
…in a situation like that, is ‘shooooooooot!’ okay to use? Because I did. When he got to Mason’s doorstep and didn’t pull the trigger, it just came out of me involuntarily. (And I’m far from a ‘shoooooooot!’ kinda guy. Anyone else yell that at that moment?) Followed promptly by “what the fuck are you dooooing!?” as he went around the net, probably thinking to himself – ‘I was suppose to do something there…shit, what was it?’
Maybe Scott Bakula quantum leaped into Kopecky’s body at that moment, and, well…I can’t blame Scott for not knowing what to do immediately upon taking a new body.
"What the hell, let's review it." - Dale Tallon
"They are!" - Pat Foley
"What a farce." - Dale Tallon
by HawkVision on Feb 4, 2010 3:01 PM CST reply actions 1 recs
after the play
I yelled, “WHY IS THIS FOOL SO USELESS?”
by gmh on Feb 4, 2010 3:05 PM CST up reply actions
I admit, I yelled "SHOOOOOOOT!!" too.
Followed by “Kopecky, I hope they trade your ass!”
My cat (who watches all Hawks games with me and whom, I’m convinced, is a lucky charm) looked at me like I was insane when I yelled SHOOT at a Hawks forward. I have trained her well.
by spokeinthebandwagon on Feb 4, 2010 3:12 PM CST up reply actions
fundamentals....
He is constantly perfecting his puck possession game, shooting is for the weak.
BOOOOOOOM!!!!!!!
You're okay
to use “shooooot” on that play, I believe. You are correct, in that instance the nervous system takes over and its just an involuntary reaction…nothing you can do about it. Personally, I yelled “HEY!!!” at my TV; my mind couldn’t believe this guy did nothing with the puck, and my body didn’t know what else to do.
yes, it is
because let’s face it, he SHOULD have taken a shot.
Tweets @ChiBlackhawks and blogs at Blackhawks Down Low.
by chiblackhawks on Feb 4, 2010 3:18 PM CST up reply actions
thank the lord he'll be the odd man out
i’d rather have fraser play wing
Good story about your pet
Please work on the lucky charm cat, were gonna need it!
Revenge is a very very very dangerous motivation!
by thepuckstopshere on Feb 4, 2010 3:18 PM CST reply actions
the worst part about this loss...
is having to hear shit from my stupid ass StL. fans… like these wonderful texts i got after the game…
there’s nothing like watching a chicago team come out of dead last in the rankings for several years only to choke in the playoffs when they finally get there. at least you guys will always have urkel….
umm…. i’m not sure if u exactly know what choking in the playoffs is… but… being the youngest team in the league, with almost no play-off experience. being the 4th seed, beating the 5th and 3rd seeded teams in the west. And then taking one of top 3 teams all season to 5 games. i wouldn’t consider last year a choke job at all.
My point is that you’re city’s sports teams are terrible and I hate them. Ok, you made it to the conference playoffs with a young team, well no shit, you’ve had an early draft pick for the past 15 years. You couldn’t screw that up even if you were scouting for the rams. The thing that makes me happy is knowing you won’t get the cup before al your young stars leave to sign big contracts
fisting barry rozner with every goal!!!
by soupy's spin-o-rama on Feb 4, 2010 3:33 PM CST reply actions
and of course
i got the “HAHAHAHA FUCK CHICAGO!!!”
fisting barry rozner with every goal!!!
by soupy's spin-o-rama on Feb 4, 2010 3:34 PM CST up reply actions
pretty tough words
coming from fans of a team that won’t make the playoffs. It’s cute how they celebrate this victory like their clinching game 6 in the WCF or something. I guess teams that won’t make the playoffs do that…I know, because I did that with every game (that resulted in a win) we had vs. the Scum during our dark years. I wasn’t as big a douchebag about it though, because I had a basic grasp of reality…then again, I’m not from St. Loser.
"What the hell, let's review it." - Dale Tallon
"They are!" - Pat Foley
"What a farce." - Dale Tallon
"they're clinching" baaah, grammar faaaaaaaail.
"What the hell, let's review it." - Dale Tallon
"They are!" - Pat Foley
"What a farce." - Dale Tallon
Versteeg and the general scoring drought
Random thought. In the last 8 periods of regulation hockey, the hawks have scored just 4 goals. I know this team can score 3 or 4 every night, it’s time to start cashing in on some of these chances. This general lack of offense (one 4-goal game in the last 8 games) certainly isn’t helping mask our current defensive lull.
Still haven’t seen Kris Versteeg.
Versteeg and the third line have been generally useless since the 1/14 columbus game. That line has no identity. It isn’t a checking line, it isn’t producing points, and there’s minimal energy being gained from their shifts.
There was some discussion last year on whether or not Versteeg had reached his ceiling, and stretches like these certainly don’t disprove this hypothesis. Steeger is on pace to play the same amount of games as last year, while being on pace to score 6 less points. 6 fewer points certainly isn’t attrocious, but it would have been nice to see some growth out of the playmaker, and I don’t really think we’ve seen any. Versteeg makes a handful of jaw dropping plays during the year, but he simply does not provide consistency. I really want the kid to prove me wrong though.
No panic here, I think we’ll be fine overall, I just want to get that third line figured out.
"In an ideal world I would have all 10 fingers on my left hand so my right hand could just be a fist for punching."
I missed the game last night (off the bandwagon, this team SUCKS!)
but I’m in full agreement about Versteeg’s play in relation to his line the past few weeks.
I don’t think this is much more than a midseason lull combined with a large divisional lead either. We’ll see how things look coming out of the Olympic break.
Just because your friend says she saw me in the club with some other bitches,
sitting in V.I.P,
Smoking, and drinking, and kicking it.
i'm right there with you
hawks bandwagon was getting too popular. they were so good until everyone started liking them, but their last albums games just haven’t lived up to hip hype. so i’m done with that shit.
i’m on to the kings’ now.
i think every good team goes through a midseason/three-quarters-season drop-off. doesn’t mean much when it happens. they’ve been pushing hard in december and january to open up a huge lead on the division, and now that they have it, they can take their foot off the gas a little, both mentally and physically. there’s plenty of time for them to regain their edge for the play-offs. we shouldn’t even be thinking about those, though, until march 5.
All right, come on, dummy, you won the game. Come on. Pick up your trophy.
Jonathan Quick
Is a badass.
"To the BeeMobile!"
"You mean your Chevy?"
"...yes."
by AirTrafficAJ on Feb 5, 2010 11:11 AM CST up reply actions
Re: Versteeg
In the case of Versteeg he’s probably heard or read the rumours regarding his future within the organization. Trade rumours effect players differently as I thought Cam Barker had one of his best games of the season last night. Sharp was excellent as well, but Versteeg seemed to struggle all night and never seemed to be involved in the game whatsoever.
"Negative energy is better than no energy at all"- "Iron" Mike Keenan
Steeger is just
stuck on the wrong line. He is a top-6 forward forced to play on a checking line; simple as that. While the Ladd/Sharp/Hossa line has surely been stellar as of late, I never understood why Ladd was on that line in lieu of Steeg. Yes, Ladd has size and is a gritty guy, but Steeg holds his own along the boards and is pretty Kane-like (on, mini-Kane-like) with the puck at times. Further, Ladd is the epitome of a checking winger. If I remember correctly, weren’t the opening day lines something like Kane/Toews/Buff; bolland/steeg/sharp; ladd/brower/madden; k/fraser/eager?
Is Versteeg miscast, yes....
but at the same time, don’t forget that during the last third/quarter of last year Versteeg was on a like with Buff and Pahlsson, a very similar setup to now.
The only way Versteeg isn’t going to be miscast is if brouwer is moved back to the checking line with ladd and madden, sharp moves up with Kane and Toews, and he (steeger) gets to skate with Bolland and Hossa. Alot of people would like this, but I really like Brouwer Kane and Toews, if the coaching staff feels the same way Versteeg is probably S.O.L.
Aside from this current stretch, I was really disappointed in Steeger when he was with Toews and Hossa for a couple games. He didn’t seeem to do much and one would think that any playmaker skating with those two would really put up some points. They didn’t really have time to gel, but I don’t think that group had many points at all.
"In an ideal world I would have all 10 fingers on my left hand so my right hand could just be a fist for punching."
Sam didn't mention...
…Versteeg shooting in a 3 on 2 because he didn’t see an open Keith trailing. Similar to Ladd’s dumb no pass.
Oh well.
are you referring to something I said...
or just making a random note? I’m a bit confused if you’re talking to me.
"In an ideal world I would have all 10 fingers on my left hand so my right hand could just be a fist for punching."
just randomly piling on top of...
…mostly reasonable observations about Versteeg, and adding a nugget from last night that I didn’t see mentioned.
About the shots
It sure seems like when the Hawks hold a team to a very low number of shots the proportion of nearly unstoppable one is way out of wack, but I am a conspiracy believer.
All I can say - as a Canadian - is thank-you for this quote:
-Duncan Keith apparently has caught whatever Seabrook has. The only silver lining is it makes it more likely for a hilarious collapse by Canada in Vancouver.
This basically means that Keith and Seabrook will shut down any offensive line in this Olympic tournament. Keith will win the MVP and Canada will be signing the National Anthem in unison as they raise their Gold Medals.
"Negative energy is better than no energy at all"- "Iron" Mike Keenan
AND New Tuxedos!!!
September 26, 2007 The day a Franchise was reborn.
by Roos-34 on Feb 5, 2010 7:27 AM CST up reply actions 2 recs
I heard Gretzky's kid became a model
But had never seen evidence of it till now.
"To the BeeMobile!"
"You mean your Chevy?"
"...yes."
by AirTrafficAJ on Feb 5, 2010 11:11 AM CST up reply actions
What more Huet debate?
Win, lose, or draw this guy always seems to grab the headlines no matter what. Very rarely has he been the reason why they’ve lost or won. To pin this one on him is completely absurd because the whole team (with the exception of Toews and Hossa) was shit tonight highlighted by Duncan Keith’s play. The loss was hardly of his doing.
If rumours are true – emphasis on rumours – Huet won’t be here much longer as the Oilers are potentially interested because of Khabibulin’s injuries and the uncertainty of his future (if there even is one now). It’s no secret that Tambellini will try his darnest to rid himself of Lowe’s mistakes and get rid of Horcoff and Souray. If and when he does this trade could happen. Why? Have you seen the Oilers netminding with JDD and Dubnyk? That’s why. A fresh, new start for Huet could be a good thing for him and Edmonton.
His replacement? Once again if rumours are true – emphasis on rumours - Turco has become the main target. Does that mean the ‘Hawks have upgraded that position? Barely, but the ’Hawks don’t need any goaltender to go Ryan Miller for them to win in the playoffs. What it does do is give the ‘Hawks a little cap flexibility going into next season with Turco’s $5.7 million coming off the books at season’s end. If they choose to re-sign him it will be at a much lower cost than now.
I hate to post rumours without a credible source like Darren Dreger, Nick Kypreos or Bob McKenzie but I’ve heard enough of this through rumour on other media outlets (not named Hockeybuzz) to wonder if this could happen. Who knows, but I hate to see Huet continuously get dragged through the mud after every disappointing loss.
"Negative energy is better than no energy at all"- "Iron" Mike Keenan
Well if the rumour becomes reality
I might as well start the montra of the mindless parade…
“Trade Huet Turco!”
Well, folks, I want to thank you for being here for the recording of my live comedy album. Funny material and laughter will be dubbed in later.
by ChicagoNativeSon on Feb 4, 2010 5:16 PM CST up reply actions
It would be funny to see Bulin and Huet on the same team competing for a job again.
Also, isnt Souray hurt?
"Whats your location Chief?"
"Well, Im on a road. Appears to be asphalt. I am directly under the Earth's sun......now."
he is, but he should be back 3weeks before playoffs
Tweets @ChiBlackhawks and blogs at Blackhawks Down Low.
by chiblackhawks on Feb 4, 2010 8:17 PM CST up reply actions
Upgrade, maybe not
Cap relief for next year, definitely
Competitive violence, that's why you're here!
For those who still clamour for Ilya Kovalchuk
Get a load of this contract that he turned down from Atlanta.
"Negative energy is better than no energy at all"- "Iron" Mike Keenan
Who in their right mind would turn down that kind of money?
Besides Kovalchuk, apparently…
GO BLACKHAWKS
Witness to Mark Buehrle's perfect game July 23, 2009
by chisoxfan1473 on Feb 4, 2010 5:25 PM CST up reply actions
Someone who wants to play on a contender?
All right, come on, dummy, you won the game. Come on. Pick up your trophy.
As soon I posted that
I thought of that- maybe he was turning down the money so he could go to a contender?
GO BLACKHAWKS
Witness to Mark Buehrle's perfect game July 23, 2009
by chisoxfan1473 on Feb 4, 2010 5:44 PM CST up reply actions
Re: Kovalchuk
Sounds like, according to Darren Dreger, that he’ll be traded to an Eastern Conference team likely tonight. The Flyers have been mentioned as the top canidates.
"Negative energy is better than no energy at all"- "Iron" Mike Keenan
It sounds like New Jersey won the sweepstakes
With Bergfors, and others coming over to Atlanta. More to come.
"Negative energy is better than no energy at all"- "Iron" Mike Keenan
Per Kevin Allen and TSN
Atlanta receives Oduya, Bergfors, Patrice Cormier and a 1st-round pick for Kovalchuk, plus Anssi Salmela going back to NJ. Both teams swap 2nd round picks.
Well, folks, I want to thank you for being here for the recording of my live comedy album. Funny material and laughter will be dubbed in later.
by ChicagoNativeSon on Feb 4, 2010 8:15 PM CST up reply actions
Kind of have to agree
with one of the comments in that article saying that Kovy did Waddell a favor by turning that down that offer seeing as there’s no way Atlanta has that kind of money to begin with without mortgaging the future of their franchise.
Anyways, the game sucked but hopefully, we’ll give the Blues a receipt on Saturday on their turf.
Reppin Chi-Town on the other side of the Pacific!
by BlackhawksJapan on Feb 4, 2010 6:58 PM CST up reply actions
So about this Twitter thing
My brother and his wife always do the contests to win Blackhawks gear, and they tried to win the Keith bobblehead last night. (My brother did win a Kane bobblehead from one of the contests.) The contest was guessing who would have the first Hawk goal, and the first person who sent in the correct name would be the winner. They sent in Toews and Hossa, and I immediately began hoping that Sopel or Kopecky scored the first goal, so that whoever won the bobblehead would forever have one of them to thank for “winning” them a mini Keith.
wait what?
I’m confused by your story. Can you explain the Sopel/Kopecky=winning the bobblehead thing?
All right, come on, dummy, you won the game. Come on. Pick up your trophy.
i think he's saying
whoever guessed Sopel or Kopecky would end up indebted to them because that’s why they won a bobblehead?
Tweets @ChiBlackhawks and blogs at Blackhawks Down Low.
by chiblackhawks on Feb 4, 2010 8:19 PM CST up reply actions
Just found
This “recap” by CSN.
http://blackhawks.nhl.com/club/news.htm?id=516196&cmpid=rss-ballantini
wait what?
That recap reminds me of the blustery writing style of 19th-century newspapers.
All right, come on, dummy, you won the game. Come on. Pick up your trophy.
ESPN source cited
Kovie to Devils.
Beat me by a second.
Wonder what they had to give up for him.
by Ban on Feb 4, 2010 6:51 PM CST up reply actions
as long as it wasn't a WC team
I’m happy. as long as that team would not have been us (depending on who we’d have to deal)
Quibble
But there was nothing he could do about any of the goals…
Had Kariya scored on the breakaway, would you say there was nothing Huey could have done about that goal? Seems like a sort of circularity here. If there is a great chance and the guy scores, by definiton, there is nothing the goalie could have done. If he makes the save, well, then clearly he could have done something, because he did.
“Can’t blame Huey for the goal” is not equivalent to “there’s nothing he could have done.” God knows opposing goalies have shown us plenty examples of this, and even Huey did last night a couple times.
Impasse
The case against Huey is pretty simple. 35th in NHL in SV%. This generates a hypothesis that the guy has been well below average this year. Shot quality is quirky but presumably evens out over the course of the season.
The case for Huey is more nuanced. Huey is much better than SV% implies. First, there’s the low shot “cold goalie” argument, that may explain a little bit here, but not much (it’s been hashed out.)
The subtle argument rests on the Hawks puck posession strategy, which leads to fewer SOG for the opposition, but a higher-than-average proportion of quality chances.
Intuitively, I think there is something to this, but it’s horribly subjective. Even with gmh’s souped-up bad boy, I don’t think there’s any way to make a great statistical case one way or the other here.
Together, can these adjustments elevate Huey from 35th to, say 16th (average) or higher this year. I don’t think so, but that’s only my opinion. Other reasonable people will hold different opinions, but I don’t see the possibility of compelling, arguments to make anyone change their minds.
Bottom-line: the disagreement will not be resolved by data analysis.
How else can we approach this? How about a thought experiment? Switch goalies last night. Who wins? I know what my gut says.
The final pro-Huey argument isn’t really pro-Huey; it’s basically, GAA is all that ultimately matters. Which is true. This position implies that the Hawks can win the Cup with any ole goalie if the Hawks can dominate other aspects fo the game.
This seems to me to be what we have in fact seen this year, but I’ve got long thoughts about pulling off this trick in the playoffs.
I think the Hawks need at least average goaltending to win the Cup. They’ve gotten that for extended stretches this year, but not lately. Maybe our guys are just getting it out of their system. Look what Osgood did in the playoffs last year.
I’ll stop fretting now.
And look what Osgood did in the regular season.
Nothing. He was awful. Even now, with Jimmy The Duck playing out of his mind for the Scum, they still talk about who their playoff goalie will be.
"To the BeeMobile!"
"You mean your Chevy?"
"...yes."
by AirTrafficAJ on Feb 5, 2010 11:14 AM CST up reply actions
I mentioned Osgood's 0.926 playoff last year in some comment......
…no doubt this could happen, but Osgood did have a track record in this area that Huey doesn’t.
Can’t say this eliminates my anxiety.
Hate to say this.....
But i agree with you,I am worried too….The Hawks just haven’t looked good lately…..ever team has gone through a season slump even the Sharks Caps and Devils,so maybe it was just time for the Hawks to have a bit of a drop off…..the good news is the Canucks lost last night,and if the Hawks beat the Coyotes tonight they will separate themselves from both of them a lil bit
by csm on Feb 5, 2010 9:15 AM CST up reply actions
Speaking of the Blues, the Sharks defeated them 4-2
I guess the Blues decided they didn’t want to skate tonight, because that’s the problem!
"Negative energy is better than no energy at all"- "Iron" Mike Keenan
by hawks61 on Feb 4, 2010 10:50 PM CST reply actions 1 recs
They can skate with anyone.
They just choose not to.
by Ban on Feb 5, 2010 1:24 AM CST up reply actions
KofC
We were promised a vent, no? I demand a vent!!
by HungryHungryPanda on Feb 5, 2010 8:00 AM CST reply actions
Yeah, really
WTF? I’ve been waiting longer than anyone, since I was the only one awake when you made your original post.
All right, come on, dummy, you won the game. Come on. Pick up your trophy.
Just a quick math analysis of Huet (I’m not making anything of it…and I took out his "no decisions/mop-up duty)
When facing 20 or less shots:
6-3 with a 1.89 GAA and a ..889 Sv%
When facing 21 or more shots:
18-8-3 with a 2.27 GAA and a .910 Sv%
2009-10 Colorado Avalanche: The wheels are firmly secure thank you!
Advice to Red Wing Fans: If you don't want the reputation of being whiners, then stop whining about EVERYTHING. Your team is allowed to lose games, and when they do, it's not always because of the refs or Gary Bettman, and you seem to continuously claim
astonishing
I don’t know what to make of those numbers either, but I just cannot believe how much a 1 shot per game differential can result in such a dramatic change stats.
Shots vs quality chances?
I think some goiles (goalies) with the gaudy sv% make a lot of saves, but don’t see as many quality chances as others.
I have no stats to back this up. This is what I think. I’m sure someone will either back it up with stats or shoot it down. Probably both.
Osgood last year is a perfect example of this. Hell he’s a perfect example of this for his entire career.
If the Hawks lose 5 games in a row, I will begin to question all things, but right now, I’m really in to this team and think it’s all good.
My panic button is stored away in a locked box. Quenneville has the key.
"All questions must be submitted in writing"
I think SOG vs. quality chances...
…is a subjective data rabbit hole.
Which isn’t to say there isn’t something to the “quality chance” argument- just that it’s impossible to measure with any precision, and subjective inputs can be used to prove whatever you want.
SOG satisfies Occam’s razor better than any other goalie stat, but, as pointed out a couple thousand times, it’s not the whole story.
In my mind, are cold goalie plus shot quality adjustments enought to lift Huey from 35th to average or better (around 0.917, where Lundquvst is.) Maybe, but I think not quite.
If not, can the Hawks win the Cup with subpar goaltending? Maybe, but it wuld be unusual. Since I wouldn’t rtrade our 12 forwards en masse for anyone else’s, or our 6 d-men either, it could happen.
It’s all good, though. Our guys are our guys, and, regardless, this year is still the Hawks best chance since Espo let that damn puck in from center ice against the Habs.
Esposito sucked!
only joking. I had his jersey when I was in Jr high, way back when.
We need Len O’Connor to give us the whole story, or Walter J.
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