Att vägra gratulera en vinnande motståndare och bara skylla förluster på domarna, tur eller att ens eget lag är "nedtränade" eller inte riktigt "ville vinna"? |
| 15% |
Att offentliggöra information som i efterhand visar sig vara falsk och att klubben mycket väl visste om det när lögnerna spreds? |
| 26% |
Att försöka lura till sig andra klubbars talanger genom att i lönndom kontakta pojkar ända ned i 12-13-årsåldern? |
| 37% |
Att utse en lagkapten som offentligt proklamerat att han fuskar och gång efter annan visas bryta mot regler och stängas av? |
| 22% |
"On Sunday against the Avalanche, the Blues improved in both races and they had an unlikely hero: third-string goalie Anders Nilsson.
Nilsson, who was serving as backup because the Blues had Brian Elliott stay home so he would be rested for Monday night’s game against Arizona, was pushed into service at the start of the second period when Jake Allen, who played an excellent first period, couldn’t continue to play because of an injury.
The Blues staked Nilsson to a 3-0 lead and went on to win 5-1 win over Colorado at the Pepsi Center on Sunday. The win moved the Blues two points behind Dallas, which lost to Anaheim, and keeps the Blues four points ahead of the Blackhawks with three games to play, including one at Chicago on Thursday. Chicago has the tiebreaker on the Blues, so the Blues have to finish one point ahead of them. The Avalanche are barely alive in the chase for the final playoff spot in the West.
“We know what’s in front of us, we know what’s in back of us,” defenseman Alex Pietrangelo said. “The biggest thing for us is worrying about ourselves.”
The Blues got something to worry about when Allen didn’t come out on the ice for the second period. It appeared that he got hurt with about 3:20 to go in the first period. Allen was on the left side of his goal and started to move to his right following the puck. But the puck quickly reversed to the left, and Allen had to make an abrupt stop. Allen made a save a few seconds later and then dealt with 2½ minutes of Colorado power play the rest of the period, showing no signs of trouble.
But not long after the Blues got off the ice after the period, Nilsson got word that he would be going into goal. Otherwise, the injury took everyone by surprise. Pietrangelo said he didn’t realize Allen wasn’t playing until he got on the ice for the second period. Coach Ken Hitchcock said he not only didn’t know what the injury was but didn’t know when it happened. He said a further evaluation would come on Monday after the Blues got back to St. Louis.
So the Blues had to turn to Nilsson, who was acquired in a trade with Edmonton on Feb. 26 to provide more experienced depth after Elliott got hurt. Nilsson had played only once since being acquired, coming on in the second period after Allen gave up four goals to Calgary on March 14. He allowed two goals amid 14 shots in the final two periods and took the loss because the Blues scored four goals, getting Allen off the hook. On Sunday, Nilsson stopped 19 of 20 shots he faced, giving up only a goal on a deflection with 4:14 to go in the third.
“It’s tough to see Jake go down there, he gave us a good start,” Nilsson said. “The team got off to a good start after the first period, up 3-0, which kind of takes the pressure off of me. It was fun to play. It’s been a little while. It was fun to see some game action.
“I felt better than I thought I was going to be. I think the guys in front of me did a great job, the shots were mostly from outside and they didn’t give them many scoring chances.”
“He was a brick wall,” said defenseman Colton Parayko, who had a goal and his first NHL fight. “He gets in front of the puck, covers a lot of the net. It’s not easy to score when you’ve got a big guy in. He’s really positional. It’s good to have him back there.”
“He played really good,” Hitchcock said. “The guys really played for him too. He’s worked so hard to get back to where he’s an NHL goalie in his own mind. … He’s sound now. Really sound. He’s a big asset for us, getting points when he’s in goal. Obviously having him around has been godsend for us.”
He he, härligt att Anders går in och övertygar. Hoppas han får fler chanser. Han tycks vara i god form nu:-)
Om Allen repar sig lär det förstås bli svårt eftersom Blues då har i första hand Elliot och i andra hand the Snake. Men vi får se.