[PGT] Ortio shuts out the Canucks 1-0! Also Backlund is awesome.

[Enoch Root]

Since it was the Nucks...

AHL stats:

Poirier:......31G 12G 12A 24P +8 .774PPG
Shinkaruk:.35G 5G 8A 13P +3 .371PPG
and, Wolf:..32G 7G 8A 15P +5 .469PPG

Yup, halfway through the season, Wolf is out-producing Shinkaruk. And Poirier is at more than double his pace.

And I would expect that, with either Shore or Granlund joining the team, Poirier's PPG should probably increase.

[Caged Great]

Wolf has really come on of late. I wouldn't be surprised if he got a few games in Calgary before the end of the season.

[Red John]

Thomas Drance is so bitter his canucks lost to his hated Flames. It's amazing,

[Gaskal]

Originally Posted by Red John

Thomas Drance is so bitter his canucks lost to his hated Flames. It's amazing,

Where? Not seeing anything on Twitter, TheScore or Canucks Army.

[darthma]

Originally Posted by CSharp

Hiller reminds me too much of McElhinney when he was backuping Kipper. Except Hiller is down on his knees and stays down on that butterfly position for most of the plays in front of him. His lateral movements are slow, although it has improved in the last few games. The Flames goalie coach has probably worked continuously on his lateral movements so that he's not side-stepping with his big pads when he's in that butterfly position. The way Hiller sits close to the crease a lot of times without moving out to challenge is an indication that he doesn't have any mobility with his second and 3rd shots. For butterfly goalies, Hiller doesn't compare with Roy or Giguere. Ramo was sort of like that last year, but it seems he's improved a lot this year and adopted more of a hybrid style with great lateral mobility and pretty good athleticism.

I still say if the Flames hadn't picked up Hiller, they would be fine with Ramo and Ortio. It'll be interesting to see what the Flames will do with Ramo since his contract is up at the end of the season.

I really didn't mean it to be a witch hunt for Hiller. He has stolen some games for us (e.g., Chicago early in the year), and for a while had me a believer. He absorbed rebounds and controlled the play. He just hasn't been the same lately.

Regarding playing deep in the net, it seems to be the current thought in goaltending that staying deep in the crease is a good thing, so I wouldn't fault him for that. It's just that Hiller just doesn't stay strong for those 2nd and 3rd shots, as you say. There was a goal somewhere around game twenty where he got scored on while not hugging the post. After that game, he seemed to adjust his play down low but he just hasn't seemed right. Hopefully the goaltending coaches are working with him on it. He's a good goalie but needs work.

Another thing that seems to be a common trait of Finnish goalies is how they control rebounds or direct shots into the corners. Ortio's blocker movement is very Kipper-esque. He is not trying to meet the puck straight on, rather he tries to steer it to the corner. He was definitely ON last night in this regard.

And one of the best assets that Ortio displayed last night was his ability to cover rebounds and control the play. I remember a loooong time ago, Brodeur was asked how he is able to play so many games each year. He said that it's because he gets his rebounds which reduces workload. Kipper did this in 03-04 too, and it showed in the shot totals, which were often in the low 20's. Covering the puck allows you to control the pace of the game.

This is all from a 'non-goalie but fan of the position' point of view. So, my analysis is open for debate. I'd love to hear some goalie coaches out there talk about him.

[darthma]

Originally Posted by Headshot

I love hating on Canucks fans as much as the next guy, but I have a hard time believing this happened.

It's the interwebs. I am happy to even imagine this happening. The look of surprise at having a beer volleyball spiked into your face. That would be amazing.

[playmaker]

Originally Posted by darthma

It's the interwebs. I am happy to even imagine this happening. The look of surprise at having a beer volleyball spiked into your face. That would be amazing.

[Table 5]

Originally Posted by Gaudfather

Maybe not as much fructose (corn syrup) - Heinz is full of that stuff!

Just an FYI, Heinz makes Organic Ketchup as well, without the HFCS. It's not everywhere yet, but I've seen it more becoming more common on grocery store shelves.

[Huntingwhale]

Originally Posted by playmaker

[Red John]

Originally Posted by Gaskal

Where? Not seeing anything on Twitter, TheScore or Canucks Army.

He had to recap last nights games on a fantasy hockey website and wrote this:

Originally Posted by DranceLoser

The Calgary Flames are getting back to outworking their opponents, as they just grinded down the Vancouver Canucks on Saturday despite being outshot 36 to 23. Oh, wait, Vancouver hit four goal posts? Never mind.

You can just picture the guy seething with rage behind his computer. Such a moron.

[tvp2003]

Originally Posted by Enoch Root

Agreed. But the thing about that is that is EXACTLY what I thought his biggest problem was last year. He played well in his call-up, but I thought he wasn't strong enough in tight battles and didn't hold his ground. Last night, he was great in that regard.

Great point -- thanks for the reminder. I remember at least 4-5 times last year a puck would be in the crease and somehow get jammed through, with both Ortio and the puck ending up behind the goal line. Obviously didn't happen last night.

It's also interesting reading about the Finnish style of goaltending and seeing that in action. Their whole mantra is about eliminating the second shot/rebound, by either catching the puck or steering it out of harms way. Very different style than Hiller, and very reminiscent of Kipper (which is not surprising given their development).

Great article from Jamie McLennan here:
http://www.tsn.ca/post-2-post-rinne-...ld-be-1.150897

[jg13]

Originally Posted by Headshot

I love hating on Canucks fans as much as the next guy, but I have a hard time believing this happened.

Really? Their fans rioted after a loss and you find it hard to believe someone threw a beer?

[schteve_d]

Originally Posted by Headshot

I love hating on Canucks fans as much as the next guy, but I have a hard time believing this happened.

I have been to many Flames games in Vancouver while wearing a Flames jersey and this does not surprise me in the slightest.

[Red John]

Originally Posted by schteve_d

I have been to many Flames games in Vancouver while wearing a Flames jersey and this does not surprise me in the slightest.

The surprising part is that security actually sided with the Flames fans. They are notorious for turning a blind eye in those situations. Remember when they magically couldn't find the fan shining a laser at Kiprusoff and then still didn't kick him out?

[transplant99]

Originally Posted by Headshot

I love hating on Canucks fans as much as the next guy, but I have a hard time believing this happened.

I suggest you put on a Flames jersey and attend a game in Vancouver....you will doubt it no longer as that has been occurring out there since the 80's. They are neandrethalish in their behaviour toward opposing fans and particularly the Oiler and Flame faithful.

[Rick M.]

Originally Posted by Caged Great

Wolf has really come on of late. I wouldn't be surprised if he got a few games in Calgary before the end of the season.

Hopefully Big Ern will give him some pointers.

[Bill Bumface]

Originally Posted by Headshot

I love hating on Canucks fans as much as the next guy, but I have a hard time believing this happened.

The guy that did it is a CP member. I'll let him come on and confirm. It was hilarious.

The Arena staff in our section were actually pretty good. I found them much less protective of the dink home fans than Rexall staff we've encountered.

[rage2]

Originally Posted by schteve_d

I have been to many Flames games in Vancouver while wearing a Flames jersey and this does not surprise me in the slightest.

I stopped wearing my flames jersey when I'm in Van for flames games. Even in the lower bowls the fans try to start fights, and it just wasn't worth the risk anymore.

[GioforPM]

Drance is an idiot. However, it is true that Ortio got beat a couple times and was saved by the post, so let's give him a few games before we anoint him as Kipper mark. 2.0. That said, he wasn't rattled by the posts at all.

[JiriHrdina]

Originally Posted by Antithesis

It's so much easier to be negative when it comes to being a fan of a team, especially if your primary concern is 'to be right' rather than 'to enjoy the ride'.

You get to say things like "Jankowski won't amount to anything special for the Flames", but then celebrate and enjoy if he does.

You get to say "The Flames just aren't going to succeed if they don't X, Y, and Z" and then celebrate when they win (games, make playoffs, win rounds in the playoffs ...)

Then when people call you on it, you say, "Hey, I'm just being realistic!" If a prospect doesn't turn out? "I was the first one to say Drew Shore wasn't going to make an impact!"

Everyone makes fun of the Detroit Lions fan who got "2015 Super Bowl Champions" tattooed to his calf, but (personal tastes regarding tattoos aside) I think there's something admirable about being so optimistic.

Yup.
Particularly when predicting if a prospect will make it or not - if the aim is to be right as often as possible - just predict they all will fail - because most of them will.