It goes without saying that any team in a 3-in-3 situation always look to come out strong to start that final game. Dieppe did just that. If you were walking into the rink during the first 20 minutes and someone told you one of these teams was playing their third game in as many days, you would've guessed it was the visiting team. Dieppe won the majority of races for loose pucks and were setting up very efficiently in the offensive zone. Slammers goalie Sam Renault - who was on the losing end of that Commandos comeback two weeks ago - kept his team in it by making no less than three saves of the huge variety... which makes it even more bizarre that his miscue - gift wrapping a clearing attempt onto the stick of Alex Murray - led to the game's first goal.
The second and third periods for Dieppe were a case of key goals at key times, keeping the hard charging Slammers to the outside as much as possible, keeping emotions as in check as possible, and not just at the hands of their opponent (let's just say the most oft-repeated name in the rink this afternoon was Moe Leblanc... and if you're not familiar, he's not a player) and the Connor Wilkinson show. Nine periods in under 72 hours - including two games on the road - will chip away at even the best of teams by the time that eighth and ninth period rolls on. The Slammers know this as well as anybody and did their best to exploit it. Their use of speed through the neutral zone and allowing themselves optimal space in Dieppe territory (not to mention playing dman Steve Gillard for what seemed like 50 minutes) very nearly paid off. In the end, Wilkinson proved why the old adage "last line of defense" couldn't be more true, holding the Slammers at bay when required and helping the Commandos to their 21st victory of the season.
One thing that has been a constant all season long in Dieppe has been the solid play of #31 between the pipes. However, it's what he brings to his teammates when he steps in the cage that makes his contribution even more critical. Any team with confidence in their number one goalie plays as such. Not just the goalie himself, but for his teammates, just knowing a guy is between the pipes that will keep you in a game like today's can be the difference between a win and a loss. Much like the presence of a tough guy on a forward line can make his linemates feel a foot taller, a reliable number one goaltender can make his defensemen feel like a Norris candidate. I think anyone who was watching today's game saw just that this afternoon. There were no noticeable sags on the bench this afternoon - and at times, there could've been.
Dieppe now sits five back of the second place Slammers with two games in hand. They do it all over again on Friday night in Woodstock, but before that the Commandos get to tangle with that team they're trying to keep ahead of in the divisional standings, the Miramichi Timberwoles, on Thursday night. It all gets underway at 7:30 at the AJL.
Meanwhile, the streak is over for the Moncton Wildcats. Drummondville, a team that just seems to be hanging out in the top half of the league standings yet get very little respect for it, took down the visiting Cats 3-2, Moncton's first loss in 10 games. It was just a "blah" weekend overall for Moncton, who also looked less than impressive in their 2-1 OT win over last place Shawinigan on Friday night. I would be concerned if this wasn't coming on the heels of a lengthy winning streak, but since it is I guess we'll chalk it up to a "crap happens" sort of weekend. Time to erase this weekend from the memory banks (if I had a dollar for every time I said that in my younger days...) and focus on the next task... about as tough of a three-in-three as you can get with two games at home. Friday night the Sportsnet crew make their way into town for a nationally televised game against Halifax, on Saturday night Rimouski rolls into town and on Sunday they travel to PEI to face a Rocket team which the Cats either beat the tar out of or have the tar beaten out of by. This is the test everyone has been waiting for since the trade deadline. Let's see what goes down.
Two NHL notes: congrats to Jamie Tardif who - at 28 - made his NHL debut with the Boston Bruins last night in Toronto. Fans who were around during the 2006 Memorial Cup may remember Tardif as an overager on that year's OHL champion Peterborough Petes, scoring a key goal to help down the Quebec Remparts in the tournament's opening game. Perseverance paid off for the Welland, Ontario native.
Congrats also goes out to Steve Bernier, who's two goal game earned him first star honors in the Devils 3-0 win over the Islanders this afternoon. There's never been any doubt as to the abilities of the former 1st overall pick in the QMJHL draft, but a combination of inconsistent results and being in the wrong organization at the wrong time always seemed to plague the former Cat. It now appears that the right place and time have arrived and Bernier has responded very positively (major penalties in the Stanley Cup Finals notwithstanding).
Finally, one of my color guys, Frank Robidoux, tweeted this my way over the weekend:
First of all, bonus points to Frank for finding Moncton Alpines footage on the internet, which is akin to finding water in the desert. Secondly, this is why I try and stay on Jeff's good side.
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