10/21/09 - Nashville at Boston: L 2-3

First of all, I have to get this off my chest. I MISSED JERRED SMITHSON'S FIRST GOAL OF THE SEASON AND THEN COLIN WILSON'S FIRST CAREER NHL GOAL ALL IN ONE GAME. SERIOUSLY?! Seriously. I should have bet money that one or both of those things would happen tonight simply because I was unable to watch or listen to the game myself. I MISSED MY SURROGATE SON'S FIRST NHL GOAL EVER. No matter what anyone says, it is never the same catching it on a highlight reel. As is my luck, tomorrow will somehow end up being a repeat of tonight because I AGAIN won't be able to watch much of it live.

But I digress...

Tonight's game recap features a What The Puck first: a mystery guest blogger! Since I couldn't watch it myself, I relied on the kindness of someone who shares my love of hockey. It certainly doesn't hurt that we pretty much always share the same opinions about the team as well.

So without further ado, tonight's game recap, guest blogger-style:

I liked the lineup changes. The only line I didn't like was Dumont, Sully and O'Reilly. I can't believe I just said that; but they were too quiet. Not enough action by them. Sully worked the hardest, but Dumont was unnoticeable. O'Reilly made a few tries; one resulting in an off the post shot. That's all I remember for him, and I don't like that.

David Legwand made a niiiiice effort this evening! He really looked like he was trying to earn that contract. Martin Erat showed up a for a bit too. Both put forth strong efforts and I liked it! I also heard some words I thought I'd never hear tonight--"And Erat grabs the puck away from Chara!!" [What The Puck note: There's the puck hog I know and love!]

Cody Franson needs some NHL speed. He has the right idea, but he moves too slow. Pick it up, man! And might I add, stop it with the penalties. We have a hard enough time full strength, let's not ruin it with a penalty.

We looked good on the PK tonight, minus the 3rd penalty. That one was baaaaad. On another one, we had 2 shots on goal and the Bruins had zero...on their own PP! That's what I'm talking about!

Oh Jerred Smithson, you did a good job tonight. A goal AND some smooth moves!! You also had a few clears and helped us keep it together in the neutral zone. Your efforts did not go unnoticed, sir. Thank you :) [What The Puck note: No, THANK YOU for noticing too.]

Shea Weber and Ryan Suter: sometimes I love you, sometimes I hate you. The biggest mistakes for you two were actually caused by the refs getting in your way, so you can be forgiven. I did notice that Weber drops down on his right knee pretty soon after he blows his D spot (har har). When Pete said "And Weber and Suter have been reunited for this shift"--Boston took a shot on net. ALL I'm sayin'...

Ellis, I'm not too sure how you were feeling tonight. You seemed unconfident. You made some good saves; and I loved the glove save where you snatched it out of the air. [What The Puck note: I LOVE that save too! It's an Ellis classic.] And lucky for you, you block Weber's shots in practice, so what's another 2 miles an hour on a puck coming at you from Chara?

Joel Ward started out looking reserved. Joely, I love ya, but you have to take initiative the whole game, not just after the first period. You seem worried about your injury. Then around the 2nd, you seemed to realize you were fine and put forth that effort we love so much. Thank you :)

Francis Bouillion seems unhappy as a Predator. I'm not sure if it's just his demeanor, or if he really doesn't like it here. Gimme a smile, Dinty! [What The Puck note: Dinty is our nickname for him.]

Colin Wilson and Patric Hornqvist: you guys stole the show in my eyes. Constant hard work payed off. YAY for your first goal Colin, and the day after your 20th birthday! Good job picking up on Weber's boo-boo and getting that puck away too. Seriously, these two were great together, and I can't wait to see what's in store. New twins for sure.

All in all, we looked good. I kept thinking "There's my team. They showed up. Welcome to your season boys." We may have lost, but it wasn't for lack of effort. They played tonight. They held down the neutral zone, the D looked pretty good, great traffic in front of the net, and our passing looked fluid, despite not being all there yet. Our offense was making some plays, and they did a good job. I hold hope that our season will get better. We really should have gotten a goal in that last ditch effort...thanks a lot Tim Thomas.


A very special thanks to my guest blogger for helping out in a pinch tonight. I might have to dub you my very own Jason Arnott for coming through in the clutch. More than anything, I would love, love, LOVE to see a win tomorrow night. And by win, I mean one for the Predators.