I don't know that it's fair to say that the main difference in a hard fought second round series is one team being far more likely than the other to make you say "whoa", as it kind of feels like that analysis is a little too overly simplistic. However, considering we've now seen three relatively evenly played games featuring great goaltending at both ends of the ice, the only reason I can think for the same team coming out on top in all of them is said team's flair for the dramatic. Of course, that flair is comparatively amplified by their opponent displaying an inability to score that compares favorably to that funny and flirtatious college friend whose sexual frustrations were caused by drinking his way out of fornicating at the worst possible time. I mean, the most memorable finish an Islanders' skater has been responsible for this series was this cheeky celebration of a goal that wasn't even his own...
Still, credit has to go to Carolina for making timely additions to the old highlight reel when the games are at their most high-stakes. Perhaps I'm being a prisoner of moment. The touch pass that allowed for Justin Faulk to come out of the box and make a redemptive, Randy Moss-esque play on the puck and touch down in the goal column for the first time in his postseason career was incredible. Yet, it was only to be outdone by the visual stimulation of Sebastian Aho casually corralling a waist-high clear with the type of hand-eye coordination that would bring a tear to Mr Miyagi's eye in setting up the game-winner. Those high-level plays that are far from fundamental are burned into my brain in a way that leaves the big picture slightly blurry. That being said, you need not look further back than a 48 second span at the beginning of the third period in Game 2 to see fortunes flip on a dime due to momentous goals that were worth exponentially more than that by dozen...
The Islanders, quite literally, can't score to save their playoff lives, despite now having faced two goalies whose postseason resumes leave a lot to be desired. Maybe that's really the story to a series that isn't as lopsided as the ticker might tell you. However, I'd much the prevailing plot be the Hurricanes happening upon the type of clutch, game-breaking moments that get you out of your seat and remind you of the eye-popping skill necessary to succeed in the Stanley Cup Playoffs in 2019. That's a much more appetizing angle for the audience, if you ask me.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
Categories
All
Archives
January 2020
|