Chirps from Center Ice

I realize that we cannot win every game. I realize that. But, I also realize that we should beat teams who are missing their big guns such as Syracuse. Top gun Kyle Palmieri is on recall to parent Anaheim. This was a game we should have won.

Well, they don’t play games on paper and we lost 4-3 tonight.

John Curry v. J-P Levasseur. Tim Wallace, Brett Sterling and Nick Johnson had the A’s tonight. Keven Veilleux was back taking the place of Geoff Walker and Corey Potter was announced as a scratch again.

Before the game Brad Thiessen and John Curry received their Goaltender of the Month Awards.

First Period: WBS had a ton of early opportunities. A ton. Came ready to play off the hop. Every shot was a legit scoring opportunity. Levasseur was leaving big rebounds all night. We steamrolled Syracuse in the first, but were unable to crack Levasseur and it was scoreless after one the shots on goal 17-9. Near scare in the game when Syracuse had a late power play on a Jesse Boulerice interference on the goaltender call when the puck deflected off Curry, hit the post then dropped straight down in the crease and out.

Second period: The Ticket opened up the period with a ridiculous wrap-around goal on Levasseur. 1-0. About six minutes later, Tim Wallace scored on a power play. 2-0. Cruise control from here right? No. Nick Johnson fought John Mitchell. Game got extremely chippy afterwards. Big hits. Whoops, Tim Wallace spotted interfering. In the ensuing power play with Robert Bortuzzo sprawled all over the ice, Maxime Macenauer flipped the puck over Bortuzzo and it found Brett Festerling’s stick on the back door of Curry. 2-1. Right after that, Levasseur misplays a puck, The Ticket basically did what he does when he is that close to the goal, and made it 3-1. The period would end that way, with Wilkes-Barre outshooting the visitors 30-16.

I wonder what was said in the Penguins locker room and also what was spoken by Mark Holick in the Crunch locker room. Play not to lose? Protect the lead? If you are Syracuse, get the puck in deeper and muck it up in front of Curry?

Third period: Brandon MacMillan scored as the Brett Festerling penalty for interference ended. 3-2. Four minutes later, Nicolas Deschamps scored to tie the game. Then, nearly two minutes later, Trevor Smith put Syracuse out in front to make it 4-3 at 7:46.

I seriously do not know how those goals happened. Apparently neither did Wilkes-Barre. In hindsight, we should have called timeout after the Deschamps goal. Nothing doing after that. So we lost.

Fourth line came to work tonight. Had all sorts of quality chances.

SOG ended 45-23 in favor of Wilkes-Barre. Three stars were Trevor Smith, The Ticket and Brandon MacMillan.

The collapse in the third has to be investigated. Think it was just lucky bounces by Syracuse versus just a complete implosion by Wilkes-Barre, but three unanswered goals in about a five-minute span is tough to explain away.

Back to Rochester tomorrow who won 6-4. The good news from tonight is that Norfolk lost at home against Charlotte 3-1. Bingo killed Adirondack 7-3 tonight. Former Senator Denis Hamel had two goals for the Phantoms.

So the standings look like this: WBS has 18 points to Norfolk’s 14. Hershey / Syracuse / Charlotte all have an identical 13 points. Albany / Bingo have 12, and Adirondack is the first AHL team to lose 10 games this year and have 5 points.

Boys are on the bus to Rochester. Rochester is probably half way home on I-90 from Albany. Game tomorrow at 5:05. We’ll start a new streak tomorrow.