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Bruins @ Leafs - Mar. 20th, 7:30pm - TSN4, TSN 1050

oh i thought that was going to OT for sure.  Never thought we'd get the win and prevent them for getting a point.  Now i think they play Ottawa tomorrow?  go ottawa go?
 
Wow, what a game.  The Leafs clobbered Boston every chance they got.  Good to see Zaltsev and Komarov going at Marchand.  The Bruins got what they deserve.  Payback/karma is still there.

Anderson being a perfect 8-0 career-wise vs Boston helped and he was fantastic.  Overall, great job boys!

GO LEAFS GO!
 
Haha.  Take it from Uncle Leo on Marchand:

"He loves to talk and I love to talk," Komarov said afterward. "We were made for each other."

http://www.sportsnet.ca/hockey/nhl/maple-leafs-close-gap-atlantic-division-win-bruins/
 
I'm going to risk a cultural stereotype to say that it's nice to have a couple of Russian tanks (well, more like missiles) in your arsenal when the games get playoffey. Well done last night to our  two Nikitas.

BOOMCHATKA
 
Bender said:
CarltonTheBear said:
I still can't believe that Moore call watching it again. But I'll call that karma for the Marchand dive.
Why's that though? I thought he checked him out of nowhere, which would mean interference wouldn't it?

By the rulebook, yeah, but based on the way they were calling things last night . . . they let much worse stuff go.
 
bustaheims said:
Bender said:
Why's that though? I thought he checked him out of nowhere, which would mean interference wouldn't it?

By the rulebook, yeah, but based on the way they were calling things last night . . . they let much worse stuff go.

I originally thought that Sosh was battling a little more with Moore on that play, but yeah it was pretty one-sided so typically that is interference. But the refs were making it pretty clear it was prison rules last night. I very much don't like it when that happens, the idea of putting away the whistles so the players can "decide the game" is asinine. But if they're going to do that you have to be consistent with it.
 
A game like this really just reinforces my idea that Rielly is a significantly better defenceman when he's allowed to play with a little more offensive spirit. And in the process that makes the team better. His best skill, far and away, is his ability to rush the puck. And he simply doesn't do that enough when he's in that shutdown role. So he either needs to adjust how he plays in that role, or be given more ice-time away from it. In both cases the coach has a lot of input there so the blame doesn't really fall on him. But I've been saying since last season that Babcock has been trying to make Rielly a defenceman that he isn't, and I just don't think that's working. It's time to start letting him play to his strengths.
 
CarltonTheBear said:
A game like this really just reinforces my idea that Rielly is a significantly better defenceman when he's allowed to play with a little more offensive spirit. And in the process that makes the team better. His best skill, far and away, is his ability to rush the puck. And he simply doesn't do that enough when he's in that shutdown role. So he either needs to adjust how he plays in that role, or be given more ice-time away from it. In both cases the coach has a lot of input there so the blame doesn't really fall on him. But I've been saying since last season that Babcock has been trying to make Rielly a defenceman that he isn't, and I just don't think that's working. It's time to start letting him play to his strengths.

It seems to be what they've been trying the past handful of games. Same thing with Matthews.

So now Gardiner-Zaitsev get the hard match up. Rielly is part of the mix depending on the zone start (hard, soft, offensive, defensive). The forward lines are still mostly matched line to line, but Babcock is using Kadri for the hard match, and Boyle for the secondary, letting JvR-Bozak-Marner and Hyman-Matthews-Nylander attack the softer underbelly.

Basically, it's a change in coaching priority to win in the present, leaning into strengths, rather than developing a more well rounded game.
 
CarltonTheBear said:
bustaheims said:
Bender said:
Why's that though? I thought he checked him out of nowhere, which would mean interference wouldn't it?

By the rulebook, yeah, but based on the way they were calling things last night . . . they let much worse stuff go.

I originally thought that Sosh was battling a little more with Moore on that play, but yeah it was pretty one-sided so typically that is interference. But the refs were making it pretty clear it was prison rules last night. I very much don't like it when that happens, the idea of putting away the whistles so the players can "decide the game" is asinine. But if they're going to do that you have to be consistent with it.

I think what made the difference on that call was that, by shoving Sosh down, Moore made himself wide open in front of the net. If the referee doesn't call interference, the other Boston player could have got the puck and passed to Moore for a point-blank uncontested shot in front.  And then you'd have the probably winning goal scored thanks to blatant interference, and the ref chose not to risk that, so called the penalty.
 
CarltonTheBear said:
I originally thought that Sosh was battling a little more with Moore on that play, but yeah it was pretty one-sided so typically that is interference. But the refs were making it pretty clear it was prison rules last night. I very much don't like it when that happens, the idea of putting away the whistles so the players can "decide the game" is asinine. But if they're going to do that you have to be consistent with it.

I don't think it's anything quite so black and white. In addition to what CK notes above, I think Refs can decide in the middle of a game that's in danger of going off the rails try to rein things in a bit by calling something they might not have earlier. Provided there's some measure of communication I think Refs can adjust how they call things throughout.
 

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