Thursday, May 01, 2008

Game 5 Review: Flyers 4, Habs 2


Steve Bégin, you're an asshole.

14 comments:

Anonymous said...

Put Chips in for Bégin.

And Streit has been a waste of space. Put Stewie in. Let the Phuckity Phuck Philly Phlyers try to Phacewash him.

Bryan Driscoll said...

i'm so tired of hearing guys rip on Bégin.. he's the only guy who gives everything he's got every shift of every game. maybe falling behind 2-0 in FOUR STRAIGHT GAMES doesn't really help our cause.

Anonymous said...

I don't know, I think the call was bullshit. If I ran the league, then hitting a guy 2 second after the puck was gone would indeed be interference, I don't run the league, though-- some dickwad from the NBA does-- and that call is never, ever made. I'm sure if you went through the game tape, you could find 2 dozen hits from last night that were just as late. Begin hit his square and from the front. Basically, he got a penalty because the door was open.

I found it especially annoying to hear Stock, Cherry, and the rest of the 'finish your checks' brigade getting on his case. They spend most of the series saying that Montreal wasn't playing with enough 'intensity' (whatever that's supposed to mean when you're outshooting and outchancing the other team), and then criticize Begin for, well, finishing his check. Cherry even compared it to the Hatcher boarding penalty, which is just bullshit: hitting a into the boards from behind in never cool. Hitting a guy square, form the front, shortly after the puck is gone is almost always cool.

Anyway, I know Begin is going to get slammed for this, but I think the call just sucked.

Habsfan10 said...

Um, Bryan, there's a phone call for you from a Mr Koivu on line one ... a Mr Greek Lightning on line 2 ... a Mr Josh Gorges on line 3 ... oh hell. Don't insult this whole team by claiming Begin is the only one busting his ass.

The game certainly wasn't lost just because of the hit, but it sure was a momentum killer, and a stupid play at a critical time. He's going to get raked over the coals for it.

Anonymous said...

Ditto to HF10's praise of Gorges. That guy has been outstanding.

A Concerned Citizen said...

I don't mind the call, and I don't mind the hit. Montreal has only itself to blame for being in this position. They have had far more power plays then Filthydelphia, and it's the Habs who have failed to do ANYTHING with those power plays. I agree with the argument that Begin was playing with intensity and has been one of the more reliable players this post-season. And whether the call was justified or not, well, if Montreal would put the damn puck in the net and stop falling behind 0-2, maybe those calls wouldn't matter so much.

fezworth said...

1993 has hit the proverbial nail on the proverbial head.

Ultimately, losing this series isn't Carbo's fault. It isn't Price's fault, nor is it Halak's or Bégin's.

You could point to any one moment, a late hit, a puck just catching a glove before hitting the net, a goalie change, and say: "That was the turning point." In another series, maybe you'd be right.

But in this series, you must be wrong. Bégin's hit wasn't the reason we lost. We lost because out of all the great chances we had in this game, we couldn't put one past Biron before the Flyers put two in our cage. We lost because despite carrying the play, despite working their asses off, the Habs couldn't score. It's not Bégin's fault that Chris Higgins hasn't been scoring. It's not Halak's fault that DOOM was in the middle of the slot on the winning goal, waving at nothing with his stick when he should have been beside the net, shoving Brière's nose into the ice. And it's certainly not Carbo's fault that for at least two games, Price let in two weak goals.

Ultimately, there's no 'one thing'. There's no one goat here. We have played better than Philadelphia. Unfortunately, simply playing better doesn't seem to be enough. Apparently, we have to destroy them on the ice, in order to beat them on the scoreboard. Pointing to one person and saying "It's his fault" doesn't get you anywhere.

But it was totally Breezer's fault.

Anonymous said...

Jeez guys...I'm pissed off too...I might still go down to the mandarin hotel and do a coke smack OD, but come on, Begin makes 10 great plays for every shit one. We are cocking up in so many ways this series, begin's error is only a small part.

Cheer up people, we're gaining experience.

Pants to all

jeff Hong Kong

Anonymous said...

Fez - Good points, but the defensive lapses you describe aren't even the reason. None of those would have mattered if 1) the habs would make the Flyers' defensemen's lives a little more difficult by using their speed on the forecheck; and 2) if they made Biron's life a little more difficult by crashing the net & taking advantage of his very so-so lateral movement instead of shooting into his chest (Big Tits, I'm talking to you!) And they need to get Streit off the PP - he's been making nothing but bad decisions this whole series.

Higgins isn't scoring? So he should park himself in front of the net for the garbage goal. Someone needs to tell him they're worth just as much as the pretty goals.

As for Bégin, that was a bonehead play if only because BS calls like this at a crucial point in the game have been the only consistent thing about the officiating in the playoffs. He should have known better by now.

Anyway, to reiterate my earlier post, I'd love to see Chips (just 'cause I love the guy, and he has not one, but two CH's in his name), and Stewie (who I think would do a great job distracting the Flyers). Hell, I even want to see the Milk Carton.

Navin Vaswani (@eyebleaf) said...

for the record, i'm a leafs fan, and even i didn't agree with that call on begin. it's the god damn playoffs!!!

moeman said...

It'll be easier said than done but one shift, one play and one period at a time. Score a goal, get a lead, score again. The cocky opponent will have nothing to lose and I expect them to be even cockier.

Habsfan10 said...

Dammit, you people! I'm working on a post right now that covers what's being discussed! Type slower!!

Anonymous said...

Higgins has been non-existent. 21 minutes of ice-time, only two shots with a -1 rating last night.
Streit looks completely lost on the ice.
I hate Ryder as much as the next guy, but we need to shake things up a bit. Pull Lapierre or Gui and put in Ryder.

Mr. Mills said...

That call on Begin was a penalty-- in the World Junior Tournament where finishing your checks (or hitting too hard) are penalized.

That hit by Begin was not late (it occured within 3 second of the puck leaving the Flyer's stick)was from the front and didn't involve any elbows, sticks or other dirty play. To make that call at that point in the game is ludicrous. For those who would argue that Ref's shouldn't take timing into account, please explain to me why Brisebois was called for Holding on Briere early in the game but a very similar play by Philly on Montreal in the third was let go?

Finally, for those who scream that we should get in front of the net-- I agree. However, since Philly is allowed to wrap-up (I'm not kidding, look at the game tape) Habs players any time they get within an 8'x4' rectangle of the goal line, perhaps the habs have tried (yes, unsuccessfully I know) to work more from outside that sanctioned mauling area. I mean i can't counnt how many times a habs player when skating towards the net was wearing a philly player on his back last night.

It's time the league decides what is acceptable play and make that the standard for both seasons. It will then remain for the Habs management to read and react when it comes to crafting a team that can succeed in the playoffs. If the league decides to call the 2nd season like the first, we should be fine in the future. If the league doesn't do this then the Habs are in need of a major overhaul.

Done venting now.