While saying that the Marlies had a good shot at this series was far from a ridiculous prediction, nobody could say that they expected tonight’s start. If they did, they were probably criticized for doing so, and deserve much apology. Against the odds and concepts of common sense, the boys in blue and white entered the Cox Convention Center and not only won, but did so in a commanding fashion, with a 5-0 shutout.

The first period saw a powerplay to the Marlies just twenty seconds in. Mark Arcobello, who leads the Barons in scoring, ran Mike Zigomanis into the boards. Zigomanis was slow to get up, but ultimately okay. Nothing came out of the powerplay, and the game progressed. This wasn’t the last you’d hear of the Marlies though, as five and a half minutes into the period, Marcel Mueller scored the opening goal of the series.  After killing two penalties, Toronto had a second powerplay opportunity  at the fourteen minute mark, which Nicolas Deschamps turned into his second goal of the playoffs.

The second saw more opportunity for both teams, with the Marlies ultimately failing on three powerplays. What they didn’t fail to do though, was score. Midway through the frame, Matt Frattin brought back the wrist shot that dominated the second round to widen the gap to three.

Moving on to the third, the Marlies saw no reason to stop. So much so, that a face that used to be so familiar to the score sheet, but disappeared, made an appearance. I’m referring to Joe Colborne, who was so happy to score his first of the playoffs that he kissed his stick in celebration. Furthering the domination, Jake Gardiner went into “carry the team on my back” mode, glided through his competition, faked a wraparound, and instead cut into the crease and tucked home the 5-0 goal.

Other Notes

Ben Scrivens had another mindblowing game. He saw 31 shots, and stopped them all, including 14 in the third period. Some were huge, and while the game was never really in danger, you have to think his play gave the team confidence to keep going throughout.

Nazem Kadri had a pair of assists, putting him over a point per game. The playoff performer hype he earned in junior is definitely transferring here.

If that goal puts Joe Colborne into even a poor mans early-season Joe Colborne, this team is going to be on cruise control. That’s a big if, though. Even with that said, massive night for his confidence.

Matt Frattin looks the opposite of how he did with the Leafs – shots are going in like they’re nothing, rather than posts and missed nets. You want confidence? This guys got boatloads.

The entire Mueller – Dupuis – Deschamps line had two points each. Great effort by them.

Jake Gardiner’s skating ability is just so much better than everyone elses. During his goal, you’d think he parted seas by his presence.

Will Acton couldn’t buy a goal for the life of him tonight. Two breakaways that didn’t lead to anything. Still trying to get on the playoff scoresheet.

The powerplay went 1/7. Started off looking good, then seemed to go through the motions.

The penalty kill was a perfect 6 for 6. They’re pretty much unstoppable at the second.

There’s no way there were 2500 people at this game. I mean, good for Oklahoma for being not Abbotsford, but it was empty.

I don’t see the rest of the series being this easy. But you have to be optimistic moving forward.

Game two is tomorrow at 8PM. Catch it on LeafsTV, AM640, Xbox Live, one of the 300 twitter hashtags, and AHL Live. Just kidding, nobody is paying $40 to watch one series on AHL live. Straight up gouging.

"The next time these two teams face each other, we'll be teammates in the press box" "Yeah right"

Well, be prepared to hate me – I said the Marlies would lose to Oklahoma City in the Conference Finals, and that the Barons would go on to beat St. Johns. If this does indeed happen, feel free to flood me with hate mail for the next several lifetimes. Anyway, I doubt that I have psychic skills when it comes to the AHL, so lets not worry about what I said on a hunch and actually look at this series with our eyes and brains rather than my heart and gut.

The first thing that has to be looked at in this series – both teams come in incredibly hot. The Marlies may lead the AHL playoffs in winning percentage (0.875), and goals against average (1.75), but the Barons are second in both (0.875, and 2.11) and lead in goals for per game (3.44 to the Marlies 3.38). Both have won their last four games, and have kept relatively calm heads in terms of penalty minutes (104 and 97, the lowest of teams remaining). So while the Marlies come in with pitchforks and torches, the Barons are coming in with.. slightly less sharp pitchforks and slightly warmer fire in their torches?

Next, one could look at their season series, which lasted a whole two games. The first one was in the middle of the Marlies low point of the season – the beginning of their first road trip, where they lost six of seven games. This one, while not the worst on the score sheet (that goes to the 6-1 loss to San Antonio), was probably the most disappointing performance of the team in maybe the entire year. For one, the Marlies went a mind boggling 0/11 on the powerplay, something I would question if I hadn’t spent the year watching the Marlies powerplay. Even then, that’s still a spectacular low point. As well, the offence was so mis-appropriated that Simon Gysbers lead the team with seven shots that night. Yes, he scored one, but it’s the concept that remains mind boggling. That said, their second performance was much better. If you don’t remember, Mike Zigomanis scored a pair of goals in this 2-0 shutout win, a game where the Marlies were also held out on the powerplay (0-14 in the season series). That said, Toronto did take just sixteen shots.

What can we take from these two games? From the Marlies side, not as much as you’d think. For one, we have no idea how Ben Scrivens will do against the Oilers affiliate, seeing as he played a whopping 0 minutes. Mark Owuya was between the pipes for the loss, and Jussi Rynnas had the shutout win. As well, these games saw performances from Jeff Finger, Josh Engel, Kelsey Wilson, Tyler Brenner, Kenny Ryan, Kyle Neuber, Drew Paris, Matt Caruana, and Colton Orr. If we want to add some absurdity, Andrew Martens was playing for the Barons. Other than possibly Orr in the event of an injury, I wouldn’t count on seeing any of these guys at all this series, meaning the group that’s playing now is rather different than the ones Oklahoma has seen to date.

Leading the pack for the Barons in terms of scoring is Mark Arcobello, who has followed up a 43 point regular season with 11 points in 9 games. Against Toronto, he had no points in either game, and two shots in total. For well known names, one would look to Magnus Paajarvi-Svensson (6 points in 9 games), Anton Lander (4 points in 9 games), and Colten Teubert (0 points in 4 games). Paajarvi was the only one of the three who has a game played agains tthe blue and white, and he was a pointless -1 in it. Other than that, the team has four players tied for the club lead in goals with 4 (Josh Green playing the fewest games, 7), Dylan Yeo leads the team in penalty minutes (27), and both Hunter Tremblay and Dan Ringwald are +8′s (Tremblay playing the fewest games).

In net for the Barons is Yann Danis, who’s save percentage has dropped in these playoffs, but remained at a solid 0.911. Playing in both games against the Marlies this year, Danis made 37 saves on 40 shots for a save percentage of 0.925, in line with his regular season percentage of 0.924. As stated before, Scrivens hasn’t played against them yet, but has been stellar in these playoffs – atop the AHL’s goaltending statistics with a 1.61 GAA and 0.944 save percentage.

For the Marlies to win this series, they’re going to have to rely on two things – winning the goaltending battle, and figuring out the Barons system. The first one sounds easier than it is – Danis is the best netminder the team has seen so far. David Leggio was good, but the issue with him was how he played specifically against Toronto. Danny Taylor and Leland Irving put in solid efforts but were worn down soon enough. Danis combines a good track record against the Marlies with being an all around top tier AHL goalie. As for the roster in front of him, there isn’t a lot of glaring talent on the roster, with the success coming from being a cohesive team unit. If there was a moment for Dallas Eakins to really show off his ability to coach a team, this is the time. On paper, the roster comparison isn’t a contest. It’s up to him to figure out how to use that to have his roster neutralize and take over their opponents.

The series opens tonight in Oklahoma City. The Marlies return to Ricoh Coliseum on Monday afternoon for game 3, and also have home ice for game 4 and if necessary, 5. If the series is to go further, games 6 and 7 will be played in Oklahoma City.

Photo Credit: Darryl Dyck (Canadian Press)

Normally, I use this first paragraph to bring up a comparison, or something I feel about the opponent. Sometimes, I’ll make fun of how many times the two teams have faced each other this year (nine, if you’re curious). Today, though, I’m using this space to apologize for the lack of post games for games 3 and 4. “Nobody’s up this late! I’ll do this tomorrow” gets you too complacent, particularly when you end up busy from the moment you wake up. That said, it works out that the Marlies didn’t have the same laziness heading to BC, winning both of those games, giving them a chance to eliminate the Heat on Wednesday night. And in front of about 14 people, they did just that, winning an overtime thriller to send the team to the Western Conference Finals.

The first period started off in a way that you would think to be a positive – with a powerplay just a minute and a half in. However, logic finds itself a way of working in mysterious ways sometimes. With thirty seconds left on the man advantage, a series of unfortunate events lead to Paul Byron scoring his first goal of the series at the three minute mark, putting the Marlies down 1-0. Ten minutes later, Abbotsford scored again, this time with Krys Kolanos delivering the insurance marker. However, this wasn’t all for the blue and white. Just a minute afterwards, Jake Gardiner scored his long awaited first goal of the playoffs, injecting some hope into the team. Other than a few minor penalties, that would be all for the opening twenty minutes.

The second offered little in terms of scoring, but when it did, it was one that mattered for the Marlies. With exactly two minutes to go in the period, Matt Frattin continued his consistant domination of the Heat, scoring his fifth of the playoffs and tying the game. The two teams exchanged minor penalties in this period, but nothing came out of either attempt.

The third was a quiet one, with the teams exchanging very few chances, with just 13 shots over the entire period from both teams combined.  The Marlies killed a holding penalty midway through the period, acquired by Korbinian Holzer. At the end of three, the game was still tied at two, so the teams were off to overtime. The Marlies came out strong, with Nazem Kadri nearly ending the game just two minutes in, but a big save by Danny Taylor kept things going. Alas, Toronto wasn’t done. At almost the exact same time as Holzer’s penalty in the third, Hugh Jessiman was sent to the box for Abbotsford for two minutes. Of course, he wouldn’t be there that long. Twelve seconds into the powerplay, Mike Zigomanis picked up a loose puck in front of the net and put it in the back of the net, ending the game and sending the Marlies to the next round.

Other Notes

Ben Scrivens had another spectacular game, making 29 saves on 31 shots.

Matt Frattin is further confirming my suspicions that as an Edmonton-born kid, he hates the Flames. 7 goals in 8 games against the Heat? If he’s down here next year, the Marlies should bribe the league to make them the team they face 15000 times for no reason.

Jake Gardiner finally gets his goal. No shock, it was only a matter of time. He’s been a solid offensive weapon for the team all playoffs.

Was Greg Scott yesterday’s hero, today’s non-contributor? This happens frequently, and it definitely did for him tonight. After a hat trick, he was a -1.

Phil Dupuis lead the team with 7 shots.

Nazem Kadri quietly pulled out a two assist night. Looked solid and made some creative passes.

The powerplay was effective when it most mattered, though the shorthanded goal they gave up was a bit sketchy. Speaking of killing penalties – Marlies went 3 for 3 in game 5, which is the same level of perfection that they achieved in every game all season.

Upcoming article tomorrow afternoon recapping the entire series to make up for missing post games in game 3 and 4.

It is often suggested that teams are built from the net out, and that the best teams, no matter how good they are up front, have a dependable netminder leading the way for them. The Marlies are a very strong example of this, with a significant part of their success stemming from the fact that they allowed the fewest goals in the entire American Hockey League this year. A stellar defence has a lot to do with it, but just as much of it comes from who’s in net, and when it came to keeping pucks away from the 4×6 pipes, no goalie on the Marlies did it better this season than Ben Scrivens. In fact, it could be argued that no goalie in the entire league was capable of doing it quite at his performance level – leading all goaltenders in goals against average, and finishing 5th in save percentage. When you consider how often the Marlies would have their wins come by the skin of their teeth, a goalie who has been insanely consistent at letting in two goals or less is a huge asset to have during the regular season.

Come playoff time, it seems that he’s stepped it up even further. Scrivens is second among playoff goalies in goals against average and save percentage, and one of just four goalies to post a shutout. His most impressive night of the year may have actually come last night – while it wasn’t won of the 5 times he’s left the opposition scoreless, his 37 saves on 38 shots were crucial in keeping the team in the game until the pucks started going in, and just as important in maintaining the lead from there. It’s just another feather in a cap that’s been growing throughout the season, and could continue to grow as he develops his game.

In the mean time, while we await his future, Ben took some time after last night’s performance to answer a significant chunk of questions from MarliesHQ readers on Twitter, Facebook, Tumblr, and HFBoards. I kept some of the questions out, but we got through an insane amount. This is a long one, so I’m going to quit this intro while I’m ahead.

What did you think of the Heat’s empty net attempt with 10 minutes to go?

I thought it was good coaching, really. I mean, if you score with ten minutes left and make it a 4-2 game, it’s a 2 goal game and you have ten minutes to work with. Obviously, its a gamble every time you do it, but I thought it was great coaching.

How close are you with the other goalies in the organization?

Reims (James Reimer) and I are really close, Jussi (Rynnas) and I obviously are close, we spend a lot of time on the same team. I don’t know Garret (Sparks) all that well, but Mark (Owuya) and I are close. We don’t call each other and stuff, but we know each other from Frankie’s (Francois Allaire) camp over the summer. I’ve said it numerous times, the Toronto Maple Leafs bring in quality personnel, no matter if its a player, media relations, or a secretary. They bring in quality people that make it really easy to interact and be social with anyone you come in contact with.

You’ve spent time in the NHL, AHL, and ECHL. What do you find are the major differences between the three pro leagues?

I’ve always said the top line talent is the biggest variable. In the NHL, the top line, you don’t have those scorers, the consistency of them. Sometimes you have guys that are going to be on that top NHL line in the AHL, but they’re finding out how to play the pro game, how to bring it every night, how to get their shots off, how to get their points at this level, so it’s not as consistent of a threat. At the NHL level, those guys know how to play, when to pick their spots, and a lot of of times, they know how to make something out of nothing. As you go down to the bottom six, you can see how many guys go up and down on every team, that are AHL guys that can fit seemlessly into the NHL, going back and forth. The main difference is top line talent, and it’s the same concept between the AHL and the ECHL. The top guys in the AHL are above the ECHL guys, but the ECHL guys can come up and put up points to, so its not like you’re leaping from one league to another.

Scribbles is gaining steam as a nickname for you online. Do you like it?

Scribbles? Put it to you this way – none of my friends call me that.

Honestly – I’ve just heard of it myself. Suddenly everybody’s been using it, so when I first saw it, it threw me off too.

My nickname at school was Scurvy. So, I prefer Scurvy over Scribbles.

Have you had to change your style in any drastic way since starting professional hockey?

No.

How old were you when you started playing hockey, and what inspires you to keep going in it?

I’m just having fun. I started playing when I was really young, and I started playing goal when I was in novice. Exclusively goaltender when I was in Novice or Atom, and then I never thought I was going to be any good, so I was always playing for fun. I went to Cornell to get a great education, not as a platform to make it to the pros. I went there hoping to play a dozen games in four years, and be able to say I played Division I hockey, and then obviously I got fortunate, was able to play, got more fortunate and someone liked me, and now I’m just getting more and more fortunate every day now, it seems.

When you you were playing college hockey, did you have any favourite arenas to play in?

At home. We had the best fans in college hockey at Lynah Rink. With the Lynah faithful, the game almost happens outside of the class, because there’s so much stuff going on. The student section is unbelievable, and if I could go back and play one game anywhere, it would be there.

Do you feel there’s a healthy competition between you and the other goalies on the team right now?

Absolutely. You need competition, and you need guys pushing themselves to try to steal your spot, or else the team isn’t going to get better. This year, I pushed Reimer and Gustavsson to steal one of their spots, that doesn’t mean that I don’t respect Reims or Gus or have a lot of respect for how they play, I think they’re great goalies, but in the end, I’m trying to better myself. Mark is trying to steal my spot, Jussi is trying to steal mine and Reimer’s spot, it’s that healthy competition that you need in an organization to insure that the organization develops.

You’re an RFA this off season coming up. Have you started to think about what will come out of that?

I haven’t put any thought into contracts.

Your weirdest experience with a fan?

I haven’t really had weird experiences. Everybody’s been respectful to me. People on twitter are idiots sometimes. It’s weird having someone talk to you like your best friend, and then get mad at you when you don’t respond or say something that they disagree with. Listen, I don’t know you, and if you don’t like it, don’t follow me.

No lie, there were people who asked me to ask why you blocked them on Twitter.

Tell them to not tweet stupid (stuff) at me, you’re probably going to get blocked, because I don’t wanna read it.

Is there a part of your game that you feel you’ve improved on the most since coming to the Leafs organization?

As crazy as it sounds, probably my puck handling has improved the most. Other than my consistency and just being in control, or my puck handling, which I think kind of goes hand in hand. In college, there was no trapezoid, and I was able to wander a little more, and I know people knock me for wandering a bit here too, but you should’ve seen me in school! Simplifying my puck handling, and simplifying my game so I’m giving myself the opportunity to make second, third, and fourth saves.

Do you feel capable of being a full time NHLer next season?

Yes.

Have you noticed any significant differences in the Leafs and Marlies playing systems, and if so, how do they effect your approach to the game?

I mean, yeah, but I notice significant playing style changes from the Marlies game by game. Part of the game is that it’s dynamic, and that though you have game plans and systems, you have wiggle room in any system. Obviously there’s differences.

I get the impression that this person wants me to say something bad about one or the other, but I’m a goalie, so I don’t even know if I could draw out any of the systems I play in. To make a comment on a system is absurd at this point. If you’re looking for me to say something bad about it.

There were a few questions I got from people, that were looking for you to say something negative, actually.

You could’ve asked them! My response to those would’ve been “You’re an idiot.”

Who was your favourite goalie growing up?

My favourite goalie when I was really young was (Felix) Potvin, growing up around Edmonton, everyone kind of pressured me for (Bill) Ranford, and I think Ranford was pretty sick, but Potvin was on every Rock ‘Em Sock ‘Em video, so he was my guy. As I grew up, I liked kind of different guys. I liked Byron Dafoe for a bunch of years, I could name off half a dozen.

Any goalies that you’d say you emulate?

Nobody, really. If you’re trying to play some else’s game, first off, you’re not going to play it as well as them. Why even try? And nobody’s the same person. Everybody’s had different experiences, everybody’s body moves different, it’s futile trying to play someone else’s game. I guess I can see the question, but I don’t try to emulate anyone, I try to stop the puck how I can best saw it.

I’d imagine there’s bits and pieces that you’ve seen other goalies do that you’ve taken into your game, which is something everyone does, and learn from that, but no full on emulation.

Yeah, I guess the answer from that would be that you take bits and pieces from a large source, not just one person.

You don’t want to be a clone of somebody, it never ends well.

Exactly.

Who do you think is the best goalie in the NHL right now, and why?

There’s so many good goalies, and the line is so fine. “I think this goalie is better because he plays the puck better” “I put more value in glove saves” “I put more value in penalty kill”. You know, everybody at that level is so good and so consistent, it’s impossible. I’d say the top ten guys are in a league of their own, and the rest of the guys are still unbelievable goaltenders and athletes. If you think about how many people play hockey in the world, to be in that top 10, you have to be doing something special.

At a certain point, it really just boils down to personal preference.

Exactly.

How do you feel about the rumours going around about Francois Allaire possibly retiring?

Obviously, I came here to work with Allaire, and I plan, even if he does retire, and I don’t see that happening, to work with him over the summer. I know people have grudges against him for whatever reason, but if they think that him retiring means that we’re not going to have his components in our game, you would have to be pretty naive to think that.

On Allaire, how do you feel he’s helped your development?

He’s unbelievable. He’s what got me to this point. Without Francois Allaire, I don’t get a contract out of college, I don’t get my first NHL game, I don’t get a second contract, I don’t get to be a #1 playing on a playoff team. So much of my success goes to the team playing in front of me, the coaching staff, and Frankie in particular.

If the opportunities line up and you find yourself as the Leafs starter, what would that mean to you?

It would be unbelievable. But, if the stars lined up and I won a $100 million dollar lottery, how would I feel? Both are so far off for now that it’s not worth commenting on.

What has been your favourite moment of the playoffs so far?

I mean, we’re only in the second series, hopefully the best is yet to come. Seems like every game is a battle, and every game this team seems to get a bit tighter. As a group, we just kind of gel a bit more, and I’m looking forward to see how that firms up.

Tonight seemed pretty good for you.

Yeah. That said, wee definitely made some mistakes, and some may look at the score and say “Oh, we dominated them”, but we got outshot. They could’ve scored on a couple of those penalty kills and 5 on 3′s, and suddenly it’s a 5-4 game that leaves us scrambling at the end.

You can follow Ben Scrivens, hockey player, by keeping up with tomorrow’s Game 3 against Abbotsford. You can also follow Ben Scrivens, twitter personality at @scrivens_30 (though as said earlier, don’t tweet stupid stuff at him if you like not being blocked).

After game one’s loss, the Marlies had a few things they needed to do to have a chance in last night’s game two.

For one, they had to absolutely not accept the fact that they were, for the first time this season, the underdogs. Yes, a team that spent every single game of the regular season on top of the North Division, and that swept their first round opponents, finally found themselves without the upper hand. Much like you can’t let yourself get too cocky, you have to take every game as an equal, 50/50 situation that only you dictate.

Secondarily, the physicality had to be much different. Abbotsford’s early success came from their hitting and aggressiveness setting the tone for the game. If Toronto had a chance, they had to be the one dealing the rough stuff.

Fast forward sixty game minutes later, and you’ll see that the team did just that – taking a convincing 5-1 with them as they fly to Abbotsford in hopes of gaining a series lead.

The first period didn’t exactly open as they wanted it to. While the team was throwing the body around, they also failed on an early powerplay, and had to kill a penalty of their own. Two minutes after that was taken care of, the game saw its first goal, and it wasn’t from the team that the 6244 in the crowd wanted to see. Jon Rehault opened the scoring for Abbotsford, but was the only one to find himself successful in the opening twenty minutes. The Marlies gained a second opportunity on the powerplay, and did much more with it. Nazem Kadri found an open Ryan Hamilton, who came from behind the net and tucked the puck past Danny Taylor for the equalizer. Continuing his hot streak against the heat, Matt Frattin closed out the period with a snapshot to take the lead with 24 seconds to go.

The second was the closest period of the bunch in terms of the shot count. Despite the relative control of the game, Toronto was actually strongly outshot in periods 1 and 3, but both teams managed to split the 28 taken in the second down the middle, as they did with the penalty call count, with each team sending two to the box. Before that, though, the Marlies had a lead to grow. Two minutes into the period, Jerry D’Amigo sped across an open left wing and tapped home his sixth goal in 5 games, and less than two minutes after that, Korbinian Holzer scored a goal that Taylor would love to have back – a low, unscreened slapper from the point. Back to the penalties – with seven minutes left in the second, both Phil Dupuis and Holzer found their way to the penalty box at the same time, leaving the Marlies to go on a 5-on-3 penalty kill while missing two of their penalty killers. As they’ve shown themselves to be so good a, though, they survived unscathed.  The period closed at 4-1.

In the third period, the Marlies saw themselves again in penalty trouble. After taking a rough hit into the glass a few minutes prior, Greg Scott wanted to prove that he wasn’t going to be pushed around. Was a knee on knee collision at centre ice the best way to show this? Probably not. Did it work? Well, it certainly didn’t backfire, though Scott was thrown out of the game for his actions. Holzer headed to the box with 2:02 left in the 5 minute powerplay, leaving the team on a 2 minute 5-on-3 again, though it lasted a whole 5 seconds as Abbotsford quickly earned their own penalty. Wanting to have the two extra men on the ice, the Heat pulled their goalie to restore the 5-on-3. They weren’t successful, and when everybody came back onto the ice, Nazem Kadri iced things with the empty net goal. The oddest part about this? There was still eight and a half minutes left in the game. The rest of the game was a string of penalties to both teams, that hit its peak with a Will Acton penalty shot, though he didn’t convert. The Marlies wrapped up the game with a 5-1 win, and more amazingly, while even strength – even if just for a second.

Other Notes

Despite not being mentioned in the summary, Ben Scrivens had one of his best nights in the Blue and White, making 37 saves on 38 shots. A few of them were massive, and all of them important. But he wasn’t the first star of this game, with that honor going to..

Korbinian Holzer, who effected the game on all levels. Holzer had a goal, an assist, was a +3, went to the penalty box twice, killed a few penalties, made several hits, and showed many why he’s considered to be a future NHLer.

Nazem Kadri had a good night as well. Even if you want to look past the empty netter, he drew several calls, had a pair of assists, was a +3, and took four shots.

Matt Frattin seems to score almost every time he sees the Flames organization. Seeing as he was born in Edmonton, this doesn’t shock me. Another goal for him tonight, on his only shot of the contest.

Jake Gardiner had a pair of assists, and continues to dictate the flow of the powerplay. Now, the man advantage still has its struggles, but they’ve been improving with him quarterbacking it.

The special teams were brilliant, but saw way too much opportunity to be out there. Going 10 for 10 on the penalty kill is practically unheard of, and very cool on paper, but is also something you absolutely, under no circumstances, want to see. Way too many calls against. The powerplay being 1 for 5 is good enough when you consider its usual success rate.

Attendance was 6244, a marked improvement from last game.  And they were all on Danny Taylor’s case, which was pretty cool. Seeing the crowd actually into the games during these playoffs has certainly been a unique experience.

Game three is on Saturday, at 10PM. Games 4 and 5 are also in Abbotsford and are also 10PM games, so be prepared to stay up late. Every game will be AM640/AHLLive exclusive, or repeated on LeafsTV the next day.

You’ve probably heard the beat up analogy about the playoffs, by this point in the year already. Maybe even from myself. The one I speak of, of course, is the concept that teams enter a new season the second the regular season ends, and that the playoffs are a whole new beast. I think that there needs to be an alteration to that train of thought, and that’s that I’d like to add that the season changes after every round. Yes, the Marlies impressed in round one, beyond the expectations of most. That said, Abbotsford was a totally new opponent to ovecome, and if they’re going to do so, they can’t have results like tonight, which ended in their first loss of the playoffs.

The first period was far from pretty for the blue and white. The opening half didn’t exactly start poorly from the perspective of goals against or even penalties, but momentum certainly wasn’t in the teams favour.The shot count was 12-5 over the 20 minutes, and that doesn’t even count the immense physical pressure that Abbotsford put on. When Jay Rosehill is being sent into the glass, you know you’re in for an interesting night. Alas, the important statistics started to come in towards the end. Nicolas Deschamps headed to the box for a trip with eight minutes to go, and while that penalty was killed, the Marlies ended up eventually giving up the opening goal. Max Reinhart was the man who put the first puck of the night past Ben Scrivens, and was the only one of the period to do so.

The second period was largely an improvement for the Marlies, who kept the shot count even at twelve. A few rough moments came for them though, with two sticking out. The first was the roughest, and that was Abbotsford’s second goal of the night. A shot from Chris Breen beat Scrivens high and widened the gap to 2-0. A few minutes later, there was a lot of potential for that gap to be widened when the Marlies found themselves killing a five on three. Matt Frattin’s trip wasn’t a surprising call, but Greg Scott’s hold on goaltender Danny Taylor was very much a judgement call. No harm to Toronto in the end though, as they killed it off.

The Marlies needed to open the third period strong, and did. Mark Fraser lead things with a big hit, and from then on, the Marlies appeared to have the control. Matt Frattin confirmed this fact with a goal just a minute and a half in, and the team took that momentum for all it could, peppering the Abbotsford net. The shot count for the period was 15-5, but despite some close chances, they were never quite able to tie up the game. An empty netter sealed a 3-1 loss.

Other Notes

Ben Scrivens Stopped 26 of 28 shots against, which while not mindblowing, was also pretty solid. Could’ve done a bit better on the second goal, but made key saves and a few smart puck moving plays.

Matt Frattin had a goal, which adds to his strong play against Abbotsford this season. Including the regular season games, Frattin has 4 goals in the two team’s five matchups this year.

Jesse Blacker returned to the lineup from his recent injury, taking Stuart Percy’s place. He ended up as a -1, and while he didn’t look particularly weak, you could tell that he was a bit rusty from missing the past few games.

The special teams were the usual – perfect penalty kill,  empty powerplay.

The crowd was underwhelming compared to the first round, to say the least. Just under 5000 could be a lot worse, but when comapared to the previous playoff average of 7000, it’s a bit of a shame. I get why – promotions weren’t anywhere near as evident. No giveaways, discounts, and the like. But it was still a disappointment to me.

Game 2 is on Thursday. RogersTV, AM640, AHL Live, or come down and be a part of it. I’d expect a slightly higher attendance than tonight’s.

When this series first started, I was one who didn’t have as much optimism for the Marlies as most did. After all, despite the season series advantage, the games against the Rochester Americans were always very close. As their first round playoff series began, that largely stayed the same. Yes, the Marlies left Ricoh Coliseum up 2-0, but both games were won by the skin of their teeth. So close, in fact, that the teams continued their streak of 12 straight games this year decided by one. So, while it’s odd to have a lack of confidence, from an objective perspective, in a team one game away from ending the series. That was the case tonight, from my eyes. The eyes of the Marlies? Not so much, as the blue and white came in and got the job done, sweeping the Rochester Americans 3-0 with a score that matched the series win total.

The first period started off with the Marlies making a great first impression. Despite not having the most fantastic angle to release the puck, Phil Dupuis let off a wrister that surprised David Leggio and gave Toronto the lead just four minutes into the game. Adding to the momentum, they received two powerplays within the next three and a half minutes, but did nothing with them. But it was enough to get the wheels going on this game. There was a short blip in this when Simon Gysbers went to the box, but even than, the #1 penalty kill showed the Amerks what they had been doing so well all year. The period calmed down from that point on and ended at 1-0.

The second saw a more Rochester controlled play, and a pair of powerplays to each team. None of those were successful, but Toronto’s current folk hero, Jerry D’Amigo, continued his incredible series very early in. Just a minute and thirty seconds into the frame, D’Amigo fired a wrist shot into the top right corner to bring the lead to two, which was carried into the third.

The final frame had something in common with the previous ones, and that was the fact that included a very early Marlies goal. This one came from Nazem Kadri, and it was the highlight of the game. Coming out of the box, Kadri joined the ever so common Scott/D’Amigo shorthanded rush, took in a pass, and dangled his way around Leggio to widen the gap to three. The Amerks pulled the goalie, but it was of no help. Ben Scrivens kept saving, the Marlies kept their composure, and the series ended as the clock hit zero.

Other Notes

Ben Scrivens with the shutout. A huge game when it mattered most, with 29 saves.

Nazem Kadri got the goal that everybody was waiting for, and was it ever nice. Probably the goal of the series. He also took two penalties, so it was an effort that could’ve been better, but still solid nonetheless.

Jerry D’Amigo is proving himself to be a major big game player. Another goal and an assist tonight.

For those curious as to where Carter Ashton was tonight, he suffered a concussion in game two. Marcel Mueller took his place and played solid, getting two shots with a plus two attached.

Alex Biega wasn’t playing for the Amerks, as he was suspended for his hit on Greg Scott. That one game turned out to be the end of his season.

The powerplay went 0 for 5, but looked strong, with some big chances. The penalty kill stood tall at 4 for 4.

This is the first time in 13 attempts this year that these two teams didn’t have their game decided by a single goal.

Speaking of firsts, this is the first sweep for the Marlies in their history, and it makes them the first team in the West to finish their playoff series.

Details on round two as they become available!

Here we go again, and this time, with an insane vibe in the building. If you thought the atmosphere of Thursdays game was interesting, you should’ve been here today. Every seat was sold, and standing room was sparse. The building was packed, it was loud, and it felt like a playoff game should. The Marlies job was to match the occasion. Despite some hiccups, they were able to do just that, winning 4-3 to take a 2-0 series lead over the Rochester Americans.

The first period saw the rally towels come out early. Jerry D’Amigo, who already had a spectacular game one, took a Philippe Dupuis pass and gave the Marlies a lead just a minute and fourty four seconds into the game. Things took a physical turn from there, with Rochester trying to gain some momentum back. A series of roughing calls flooded the period, including ones to Nicolas Deschamps and Jerry D’Amigo. The last of those in the period went to Marcus Foligno, and it was the one that had the biggest effect on the game. During the Marlies powerplay, Mike Zigomanis, showing shades of his very similar play yesterday, took a slapshot from the point that beat David Leggio to make the score 2-0 for the Marlies. They look that lead into the second period.

In that second period, the Marlies appeared to widen the gap to three with a Nazem Kadri deke-and-tuck. The referees felt otherwise, and waved the goal off rather quickly. The play was reviewed, but in this league, that means going to the goal judge and asking him what he saw. He saw nothing, so the goal was still considered not to count. From here, the Americans began to rally, largely on the back of Folingo. It was him who scored first at the eleven minute mark, and him who fed Phil Varone for the game tying goal. Not to end the period on a sour note, though, Nicolas Deschamps was the recipient of a rebound created by an immense all around effort by Matt Frattin to take the lead back in the closing minutes.

In came the third period, and not with the start the Marlies were hoping for. It looked like the Marlies had yet again scored the go ahead goal, but the referees waved it off, this time with certainty as it hit the post.But the pressure continued. As the crowd chirped David Leggio, the Marlies poured shots into the zone, and even earned a powerplay (Tropp with the trip – easiest headline ever?) but were unsuccessful with it. That is, until Jerry D’Amigo came up huge yet again. With just two minutes left in the game, Matt Frattin set him up to give the Marlies the lead. The game stayed that way, but not without a sour ending. Alex Biega, after losing an icing race to Greg Scott, hit him from behind, appearing to injure him at first, though he would ultimately get up and the Marlies would end the game victorious.

Other Notes

Ben Scrivens made 23 saves on 26 shots. Better than yesterday, both statistically and in the quality of his saves. Perhaps he could’ve been better on paper, but he came up in the most important times and the score could’ve certainly been higher.

If people keep paying more and more attention to this team, the Marlies keep winning, and the goals keep going in on his part, Jerry D’Amigo is going to make beards popular in this city again. Another two goal performance by him, along with a pair of roughing penalties.

Nazem Kadri scored. I swear. New article tomorrow about it and the bigger picture behind it.

Mike Zigomanis lead the team in shots, with six. His goal was from practically the same area as Thursday’s, too.

Jake Gardiner makes this powerplay so much better. One for four tonight. The penalty kill was a perfect three for three.

Seeing a sellout today was absolutely fantastic. 100.4% capacity speaks volumes about how this city is craving playoff hockey, and they got a heck of a game tonight. The crowd, more importantly was loud and electric, exactly what the players need to see.

The Marlies will attempt to complete the sweep on Monday, in Rochester at 7PM. The game will be on AM640 and AHL Live.

So, that was interesting. Last night saw the Toronto Marlies win in their first playoff game of the season (if you don’t know the details, click here for the post game). Now that it’s over though, I thought about some stuff. nothing on the ice, because I liked what I saw from the team. For now, my focus is on some off-ice stuff, based merely on what I saw last night.

To the crowd..

You were nothing short of fantastic last night. The announced attendance was 6244, and it was a number that while obviously not perfect, had way less no-shows than a 6000 game usually does. If I had to guess actual people in the stands, I wouldn’t be totally shocked with 5500. The important part though? You were loud. You went nuts with the “Lets Go Marlies” chants. You let Ben Scrivens knew you had his back. You really gave it to David Leggio as his armour started to crack, reminiscent to what the fans at the Air Canada Centre do to Ryan Miller when the Sabres roll into town. The flags that everybody got were a nice touch, and the fans were more than happy to wave them. Saturday brings rally towels to the mix, which should add another element to it all.

My suggestion to you? Keep showing up to these games. It doesn’t look like this is going to be a problem on Saturday, with the building already 95% sold out. But if you’re even remotely considering going to a game, just do it. The crowd is an entirely different experience from anything I’ve ever seen before in this building, and I mean that in the best possible way. You’re watching great hockey at a great price, and now the great atmosphere is here too.

To the media..

I have to admit, showing up yesterday, heading to my usual seat in the press box was kind of weird. Mostly because I saw a reserved sticker there. Sure enough, the media was here in full stride last night, to the point that a second press box was made outside, where I took my seat. It was different, but I was more than happy with the setup. I loved the fact that there was going to be plenty of coverage of this team for once. Sort of.

It turned out a lot of the crowd was part of the Rochester media, along with the team’s video crew. Really cool that they made the trip, but they obviously don’t add to the buzz here. Happy they’re here though. Quite a few of the Toronto types were here observing but (at least so far) haven’t put out anything. But that’s cool. Quietly observing, building up the ability to form an opinion is fantastic. It’s certainly a lot better than showing up to one game and thinking that you have it all figured it out. This is where I have a bit of a bone to pick, and my bone is with the Toronto Sun.

They sent two guys here, Lance Hornby and Steve Simmons. Lance was here to write his piece on the game itself, which was actually rather good. The only criticism I have of it is the assertion that games at the ACC would suddenly boost attendance – while I’m very delighted to see the crowds will beat my expectations, I don’t think that a building change is the difference between 8 and 18 thousand people, especially considering the fact the buildings are practically next to each other. His bit on Stuart Percy was also a good addition. Here’s my thing though – if you’re going to send two guys here, and have one of them write two articles… why is the placement so bad?

If I’m to open the Toronto Star today, the Marlies win is on the front page. Not just on it, but the lead story (with the actual article being on page 3, of course – but the massive photo is there). Bob Mitchell’s piece was closer to the first half of my post games, but it still gets the point across with the facts the readers want to read. The Sun? The Jays and the NHL playoffs on the sports cover. Cool. Pages 2 and 3, Jays. Fine. The Jays should probably get priority anyway. Page 7, and it shifts to the rest of the MLB. Alright, fine. Page 11, the Toronto Maple Leafs. Not the hockey team, the baseball team that exists at Christie Pits. Now we’re kind of reaching, but still passable. It’s baseball. Then comes TFC. Followed by a preview for a Toronto Rock 11PM away game. Getting crazy. NHL playoff time at page 14. All the way until 25. Get to page 26, and finally, you see, you know, the Toronto hockey team that won a playoff game last night. Well, at least they beat horse racing.

And don’t get me started on Simmons’ contributions. There was no article from him. What we got were tweets. The first tweet was taking a shot at the attendance, the second a criticism of Jake Gardiner, the third another attendance shot, the fourth a mention of Zigomanis’ goal, and lastly, the ever so expected 6th tweet where he calls a blogger a homer for liking Gardiner’s game last night. A few notes, Steve:

- Ricoh Coliseum seats 8000 people. Knowing this, its not hard to figure out how many are in the seats, and it was rather obvious that there was at least 5500 of the 6200 there. Not the 3500-4000 you were suggesting.

- Jake Gardiner wasn’t looking lazy, or bad enough that he wouldn’t have made the Leafs.  I understand you’re unfamiliar with the AHL, but skating ability is one of the biggest differences between this league and the NHL. Players take sloppier strides, and the entire pace is different. You’re shocked that a kid who already skates a near elite NHL level doesn’t have to take strong strides against minor leaguers? He was easily the best defenceman on the ice last night for either team. I’m sure he’ll know next time to skate way ahead of the play just to prove to you that he cares, or whatever you expect.

- For the record, I know you expected more than 6200 people here, but the first round of the playoffs isn’t exactly known for its seat filling abilities. The other games last night? 3682, 4618, 3158. And I bet the AHL is ecstatic with those numbers. 3000 is a good showing in the first round.

- And another thing, what ever happened to calling an arena by its actual name? Ricoh Coliseum, not Centre.

I actually brought that last point up to him last night. The answer was along the lines of “well, I don’t have to watch the AHL”. That’s fine. I get that yours, and a lot of the additional media have a focus outside of the league. But that’s when you keep your reporting to facts, or if you must be opinionated, stay observant until you have a decent perception. Dallas Eakins was pretty spot on when he asked Simmons if he was “jumping the bandwagon” before last night’s media scrum. It shows.

That said, any publicity is good publicity for this team, so good on the Sun for showing up. I just wish there was a better effort being put forward.

To the social media overlords..

I commend the push towards getting the Marlies out there on twitter, and getting conversation going. But #MarliesLive? The whole point of a hashtag is to have it become a trending topic, and become a hub for conversation. What was wrong with #Marlies? It’s descriptive, will catch people who just say the word Marlies, uses four less characters, and most importantly, was already used by people. The Marlies now have three of these tags (Marlies, MarliesLive, and LetsGoMarlies), and it would amaze me if anyone could keep up with all of them at once. Good effort, but it just creates confusion.

If you want something creative to try out during the playoffs? Do a search for check ins to Ricoh that get tweeted. Reward someone who does it with a prize. That would be fun.

Anyway..

That’s just a bunch of random stuff that’s been on my head. Probably the first “rant” I’ve done on here in quite a while. In short, thank you fans for showing up, and I hope to see more of you Saturday. Media, keep coming, but stick to the facts if you can’t form an opinion, and to those deciding the pages, go take advantage of this playoff team and move them up the ranks a bit. And scale back the hashtags. If we’re on a fourth one by the end of the series, so help me..

Just when you thought that ten games was enough times to see two hockey teams face each other, the Toronto Marlies and Rochester Americans have set themselves up for another few attempts at it all. The crazy part though? This time, it means something. Something more. You see, the first ten were just bragging rights. These three to five games? They’ll decide who’s season continues and who’s fades into obscurity.

Tonight, the Marlies had an opportunity to make a huge first statement, one that would also clear away the sour endings of the regular season. The crowd was pumped, eager to see playoff hockey in Toronto for the first time in recent memory. The players knew what they had to do, and opened the series with a 4-3 victory.

The first period started strong for the Marlies, and really, they consistently peppered their opponents. The shot count after 20 was 12-6, and this would be fantastic for them if David Leggio syndrome wasn’t quick to kick in. The Rochester netminder rose to the occasion again and again and again, even when the Marlies headed to the powerplay four minutes into the game. No other penalties were given to either team, but what did happen was a goal. Phil Varone opened the scoring in the series, tipping a point shot past Ben Scrivens and leaving the Marlies trailing with 5 minutes left in the first. It stayed that way going into the intermission.

The second period was more of the same. Toronto absolutely littered the Rochester net with shots, but Leggio hit the 15 save mark. And then the 20. Just for good measure, 25 came next. Penalties came and went. Rochester forward Corey Tropp took his second penalty of the game, but Toronto couldn’t capitalized. Mark Fraser went to the box, but the penalty kill stayed solid. Yet pucks kept getting stopped. Enter Nicolas Deschamps, who dropped a pass to Jerry D’Amigo, who then converted it into the equalizer for the blue and white. The period ended at 1-1, with a shot count of 30-13.

The third period started with a bang. Just a minute in, on the period’s first shot, Matt Frattin turned a Joe Colborne feed into a one timer go ahead goal. Colborne headed to the box to the box, but once he came out, the Marlies had their own man advantage to work with seconds later. Unlike their previous attempts, the Marlies would find themselves successful, courtesy of a Mike Zigomanis wrist shot. Of course, knowing this season series, a two goal lead wasn’t going to last long. Marcus Foligno brought the game within one on a Rochester powerplay, and T.J Brennan was quick to tie it up just four minutes later. Just when it looked like things would get worse thanks to a Mark Fraser interference call, the Marlies turned a positive into a negative. Fraser grabbed the puck coming out of the box, rushed towards the net, and fed Jerry D’Amigo for his second goal of the game. The Amerks pulled Leggio in the last seconds of the game, but the score stayed at 4-3.

Other Notes

Ben Scrivens looked decent. statistically far from amazing, but made a few good saves, and ultimately got the job done. Not a massive thumbs up to him, but you certainly keep him in for game two.

Jake Gardiner’s skating ability is on such another world from the rest of his peers, that you would think he had activated some form of video game cheat code. He was a help to the powerplay, earning an assist on the Zigomanis goal. You have to think the Marlies are hoping this is a sign of things to come throughout these playoffs.

Matt Frattin was in just the right place at the right time for his goal, and that’s something he’s very good at, showing it many times tonight with a team leading six shots.

Joe Colborne had two assists, a change of pace for the slumping centre. If this is a sign of October Joe coming back, I doubt you’ll hear many complaints.

The powerplay went one for five, and looked a lot better with Gardiner quarterbacking it.

The penalty kill was four for five. Foligno’s goal wasn’t a typical powerplay goal, and perhaps preventable, but they looked solid in a way that they usually do nonetheless.

The crowd was the loudest I’ve ever seen at Ricoh Coliseum, even with 1600 empty seats. The combination of the noise and the flags that the crowd recieved were a nice touch.

Game 2 is on Saturday at 3PM. Like the crowd tonight, you should come support the blue and white as they try to widen the series gap to two. As an incentive, the team is giving away Rally Towels to those who show up. A whiteout in Ricoh would look insane, so it would be nice to get a crowd that could pull that off. Tickets are nearly sold out, so I’d pick them up quick if I were you.