Make that -5.
Yeah, Colborne seems like a really great guy and everything, but man has he ever fallen out of favour with me as a player in recent weeks.. a lot of it has to do with my expectations that he'd progress as the season went on (and to be fair, he does use his size out there now to an extent), but he's plateau'd at best, and has arguably taken a step back; I still catch him floating way too much and just doesn't play with the same edge as well, pretty much everyone else on the team. I know this game didn't mean a whole lot, but at the same time, with all the youngsters playing today I would just expect a relative vet like Colborne to set a better example (-5, zero SOG).. a win today might have been a huge boost going into the ploffs.
That said, I am 100% all aboard the Fer-train. This kid has really looked exceptional as of late, and is gaining a tremendous amount of confidence with each game. If he can keep his physicality honest, and not take too many bad penalties, I'd have absolutely no qualms about keeping him in the lineup as a regular for the run. Schlemko has really impressed me too, lots of jump to his game, and plays both ends of the rink well.
I'm not sure if was solely attributed to there being nothing really on the line for this one, but a few guys just looked somewhat uninspired out there today; a fair bit of poor puck movement and a lot of guys gripping their sticks a little too tight it seemed.. as for the young guys, could've just been nerves, but guys like Colborne and Granlund were definitely not at their best today, save maybe for Joe's one rush towards the end of the game there. I didn't think Bennett looked out of place, he was definitely playing with something to prove. I wouldn't be opposed to seeing him in the lineup during ploffs at some point.
And what to say about Ortio, geez.. he really got hung out to dry on a couple today IMO, but you just know that first one sank him, and the quick response to our goal gave the Jets the boost they needed to keep pushing.
Also, what's the deal with Hartley not giving Poirier much time? Jeez, with guys like Joe on the ice for every Jets score, you'd think Emile would have at least more than one-third of Colborne's TOI. I just hope we don't have another Svendetta on our hands.. I actually think Poirier can be a special player.
As an aside, I know Backlund kept playing after blocking that shot, but did anyone hear mention of a possible injury?
Anyways, hopefully all of our regulars are rested and ready to go for Round #1. Still concerned about our D holding up over the long haul, but I think Engelland has really stepped up, and has actually looked comfortable in a top-four role at times. Here's who I hope to see for our Game #1 starting lineup:
Johnny - Monny - Huds
Bouma - Backs - Jones
Ferdaddy - GranMa/Bennett - Jooris
Raymond - Stajan - Colborne
Russell - Wideman
Engelland - Brodie
Schlemko - Diaz
Hiller