ATD #10 - Foster Hewitt Semifinals: Kenora Thistles (2) vs. Kansas City Scouts (3)

[papershoes]

Kansas City Scouts
GM: Pwnasaurus & JimEIV
Coach: Jack Adams

John Tonelli - Bill Cowley - Charlie Conacher
Joe Malone - Hooley Smith (C) - Dave Taylor (A)
Tommy Phillips - Doug Jarvis - Mario Tremblay
Dave Balon - Glen Skov - Jim Pappin
extra: Bronco Horvath

Bobby Orr - Harry Howell (A)
Brad McCrimmon - Rob Ramage
Frank Patrick - Barry Ashbee
extra: Brad Maxwell

Gerry Cheevers
Roger Crozier

Power play units:
PP1: John Tonelli - Bill Cowley - Charlie Conacher - Bobby Orr - Frank Patrick
PP2: Joe Malone - Hooley Smith - Dave Taylor - Tommy Phillips - Rob Ramage

Penalty killing units:
PK1: Doug Jarvis - Tommy Phillips - Harry Howell - Brad McCrimmon
PK2: Glen Skov - Mario Tremblay - Bobby Orr - Barry Ashbee


VS.


Kenora Thistles
GM: papershoes
Coaches: Punch Imlach, Bob Pulford

Toe Blake (C) - Elmer Lach (A) - Guy Lafleur
Clark Gillies - Marcel Dionne - Vladimir Martinec
Bob Pulford - Kris Draper - Kirk Maltby
Venjamin Alexandrov - Frank Fredrickson - Paul Henderson
extras: Dave Schultz

Red Kelly (A) - J.C. Tremblay
Silas Griffis - Mike Grant
Harry Mummery - Tomas Jonsson
extra: Bob Turner

Hap Holmes
Lorne Chabot

Power play units:
PP1: Toe Blake - Elmer Lach - Guy Lafleur - Red Kelly - J.C. Tremblay
PP2: Clark Gillies - Marcel Dionne - Vladimir Martinec - Tomas Jonsson - Mike Grant

Penalty killing units:
PK1: Bob Pulford - Kris Draper - Red Kelly - Harry Mummery
PK2: Toe Blake - Elmer Lach - J.C. Tremblay - Mike Grant​

Click to read more...

 

[God Bless Canada]

I think this is one of the most interesting match-ups of the second round. Kenora won in Round 1 because of their overwhelming advantages in skill, mobility and hockey sense.

I think Kenora is faster and more talented than Kansas City, but it's not as big of an advantage. The Scouts have very good speed. Very good skill. And yet they aren't far behind the Blackhawks in terms of grit. I had the Scouts as the top team in their division in the regular season.

Kansas City is a very tough team to play against. They have two effective grinders/physical players on each of their first two lines. Tonelli and Conacher open up room for Cowley; Smith and Taylor do the same for Malone. Cowley-Conacher is a frightening tandem.

I've sung the praises of KC's bottom two lines from the start. I'm a big fan of that third line. Especially Doug Jarvis. (Note: He received a first-place ballot in the last series. It wasn't from me, but when I saw that, I had to make use of it in the write-ups). And I'm a big fan of the fourth line. You guys know what I think of Balon. You know what my like-minded co-GM thinks of Skov. And I targeted Pappin for our third line. KC's bottom two lines can definitely keep up with Kenora's top two lines.

Kenora, though, is lethal. As I've said before, it's the best offence in the draft. If you shut down the first line, that's a coup. Then you have to worry about the second line. Their transition game is lethal. With Kelly, Tremblay and Griffis, they can change a game in a hurry.

It'll be fun to watch an Orr vs. Kelly match-up. I have them as No. 1 and 3 among the best offensive defencemen ever. They're game-breakers.

Give an edge to KC in net. I think Cheevers is the best in the series. Especially in the playoffs. You had to know I'd portray him as a lights-out money goalie in at least a couple games in the first round. It'll be fun to watch his acrobatic style against the high-flying Montreal offence.

I think Punch Imlach is a better coach than Jack Adams, but I think KC is much better suited to Adams style than Imlach. Bob Pulford's presence changes nothing.

But the bottom line in this series is: Kenora still has an edge in skill, but how will they handle a KC team that has comparable team speed and much better team grit?

 

[papershoes]

first off, congrats to pwnasaurus and jimeiv for making the second round. definitely count me among the fans of your team. any team with bobby orr as the cornerstone will be a challenge. and, you've surrounded him with a stellar supporting cast, making it an even bigger challenge.

i was beat out by an orr lead team in the last atd so, i look forward to the challenge.

 

[papershoes]

It'll be fun to watch an Orr vs. Kelly match-up. I have them as No. 1 and 3 among the best offensive defencemen ever. They're game-breakers.

i'm with you on this one gbc - the orr vs. kelly match-up is very intriguing, since both of them have the ability to change a game. orr is, without question, the best defenceman ever. that said, i believe kelly should be considered a top-5 defenceman all-time. when i faced orr in the last atd i had coffey as my #1 - a near equal match-up in offence and skating but, light years away in defence (though i am in the minority that believes coffey's defensive inabilities are slightly overblown). this time around we have kelly who, as you've mentioned, is definitely a top-5 offensive defenceman of all-time but, brings strong hockey sense and defensive awareness to the blueline. should be a beauty of a match-up.

Give an edge to KC in net. I think Cheevers is the best in the series. Especially in the playoffs. You had to know I'd portray him as a lights-out money goalie in at least a couple games in the first round. It'll be fun to watch his acrobatic style against the high-flying Montreal offence.

give an edge to cheevers but, i don't think it's a large an edge in net as it may seem (definitely not the same as holmes vs. dryden). holmes (with 4 cups for 4 teams) is, in my opinion, an equal "money" goalie in the playoffs.

an interesting note: cheevers won the hap holmes memorial award in 65'. pretty cool they are facing off against one another this series.

But the bottom line in this series is: Kenora still has an edge in skill, but how will they handle a KC team that has comparable team speed and much better team grit?

kenora was able to handle the grit of the blackhawks (arguably one of the grittiest teams in the all-time draft). if we can neutralize the grit in the same manner we neutralized dallas', and this series comes down to skill and speed, i believe kenora has the edge.

 

[papershoes]

hap holmes

i posted this in the previous series but, thought it gains some relevance here as well.

holmes brings consistency, longevity (for his time), and clutch play to the thistles roster.

One of the preeminent netminders of his era, Harry "Hap" Holmes excelled in all five of the top pro leagues from 1912 to 1928. He made an impact in the National Hockey Association, Pacific Coast Hockey Association, Western Canada Hockey League, Western Hockey League and National Hockey League. A sterling playoff performer, Holmes backstopped two Stanley Cup wins in Toronto and one each in Seattle and Victoria. He was the leading goalie six times in the Pacific Coast Hockey Association/Western Canada Hockey League when such rivals as Hugh Lehman and George Hainsworth were still on the ice. In Stanley Cup play, he out-dueled such legends as Georges Vezina and Clint Benedict...

Early in the 1915-16 season, he joined the Seattle Metropolitans with former Toronto mates Jack Walker and Frank Foyston. Once again Holmes was a part of history when he backstopped the Metropolitans to the first Stanley Cup won by a U.S.-based outfit...

Holmes returned to Seattle for the 1918-19 season and remained for more than five years. In his first year back, he was present during the tragic final series against the Canadiens that was called off due to the global influenza epidemic. The fourth game of the series was arguably his finest performance. Following a scoreless 60 minutes of regulation time and 20 minutes of overtime, referee Mickey Ion declared the game a draw.

Holmes ventured east again with Seattle in 1920 to challenge Ottawa for the Stanley Cup. Despite his brilliance, the westerners lost a close series to the powerhouse Senators. He led the PCHA in shutouts four times and in wins on two occasions. He enjoyed two successful years with the Victoria Cougars from 1924 to 1926, leading the WCHL/WHL in his goals-against average.

In 1924-25, his brilliance led Victoria past the Saskatoon Sheiks in the WCHL playoffs. In the Stanley Cup championship match with the Montreal Canadiens, Holmes starred along with Jack Walker and Frank Frederickson as Victoria became the last non-NHL team to win the Stanley Cup. The heroic netminder became the first goalie to win the Cup with four different franchises. That year he also attained his own personal triumph over Habs netminder Georges Vezina, against whom he'd waged the memorable but undecided battle in the 1919 championship series.

Happy Holmes was an exceptional goaler who played in both the east and west, compiling an average that is second only to that of Clint Benedict when weighted with the length of his career. He was on seven championship teams, four of which won the Stanley Cup.

This great goalkeeper seemed taken for granted and little reference was made of the extraordinary record that he was compiling. The eccentricities of other goalers kept many of them in the news but Holmes, if mentioned, was usually reported as playing a steady game. This he maintained throughout his career.

#28 Harry "Hap" Holmes

Holmes came up big at the most important time of year. He posted a playoff goals-against average below 2.00 in six of his ten pro seasons.

Notable Achievements: Hall of Famer; seven-time Pacific Coast Hockey Association All-Star; Western Canada Hockey League All-Star in 1924-25; backstopped the first U.S.-based Cup winner [1916-17 Seattle Metropolitans], the first NHL Cup winner [1917-18 Toronto Arenas], and the last Cup winner from outside the NHL [1924-25 WCHL Victoria Cougars]; led the PCHA in wins three times, in shutouts four times, and in goals-against average five times; led the National Hockey Association in wins once and shutouts twice; led the WCHL and Western Hockey League in GAA once each; played in five different major pro leagues [NHL, NHA, PCHA, WCHL, and WHL] and reached the Stanley Cup final with clubs from each; American Hockey League goaltending award was named in his honor.

Harry "Hap" Holmes was goalie of uncommon grit. Sportswriters called him "Nerveless." He played in 409 top-level contests in his career with Toronto, Seattle, Detroit, and Victoria. If there had been a trophy for the league's top goalie in his day, he may very well have taken half a dozen. In all, he counted 40 shutouts, adding 7 more in 48 playoff contests, and he put up a career goals-against average of 2.81 and backstopped seven league championship squads and four Stanley Cup winners.

Retroactive Awards:
Hart (PCHA) - 1922
Vezina (NHA) - 1914
Vezina (PCHA) - 1917, 1919, 1920, 1921, 1922

what other gm's have said about holmes:

-- "Minnesota selecting Holmes at 366. While I do think there is a fairly substantial difference between the first and last goalies taken, I think taking Holmes (as the last starter, no less) was a good move. I think he's a better goalie than some taken before him, and I think the drop off in talent when you get into the bottom half of starters is nowhere near the dropoff from the top to the bottom. Waiting out several rounds from where some of the other middling starters were taken was a good move." (atd #9 summary - smartest / best strategic pick)

-- "Waiting to get a goalie is always prudent. Guys like Giacomin, Vachon, Lumley, Holmes and Rayner won’t cost you a championship. They won’t steal you a championship, but you’ll have an advantage over everyone else because you waited." (atd #9 summary - smartest / best strategic pick)

-- "One of the more underappreciated and underrated goalies in history. In his 16 year career he played for the Stanley Cup 7 times and won 4 (maybe more since one of his 7 appearances was cancelled for the flu epidemic). He beat the best goalies of his era in playoff situations and won a top player in every league he played in. We happily name him the starter and feel he's an excellent starter than won't be at a disadvantage to anyone in a playoff series." (atd #9 draft thread)

-- "Goalies are graded on how they did against their peers. (Holmes was quite clearly the 2nd best goalie of his era and probably the most money goalie of his era.)" (atd #9)

 

[JimEIV]

I’ll try not to give any commentary at 3:30 am after a bottle of Vodka this round

But I can’t promise anything.


Good Luck to the Thistles.

 

[Pwnasaurus]

I’ll try not to give any commentary at 3:30 am after a bottle of Vodka this round

But I can’t promise anything.


Good Luck to the Thistles.

This is not the bias I am paying you for.

 

[Jungosi]

This is not the bias I am paying you for.

Kansas City will absolutely crush the opposition. I mean who is Red Kelly? A minor-AAA compared to the great 4. Holmes isn't an ATD goalie at all and Lafleur is overrated anyway.




























Was this enough bias to get paid?

 

[MXD]

Kansas City will absolutely crush the opposition. I mean who is Red Kelly? A minor-AAA compared to the great 4. Holmes isn't an ATD goalie at all and Lafleur is overrated anyway.


Was this enough bias to get paid?

You missed

- JC Tremblay couldn't hold Harry Howell's jock strap, both offensively and defensively, because Howell is in the HHOF and Tremblay isn't, and we all know the HHOF is all about the offensive players.

(sarcasm off)

This said, it was nice to see Howell at the Bell Centre last day. I don't remember seeing an old-timer being so happy to be there, let alone an old-timer visiting an away venue.

 

[Pwnasaurus]

Kansas City will absolutely crush the opposition. I mean who is Red Kelly? A minor-AAA compared to the great 4. Holmes isn't an ATD goalie at all and Lafleur is overrated anyway.



Was this enough bias to get paid?

The deal was I draft and he argues during the voting process. I think I've been overworked and undercompensated in this agreement.

 

[raleh]

Write up for this series will be up late tonight/early tomorrow morning depending on where you guys are!

 

[Jungosi]

Write up for this series will be up late tonight/early tomorrow morning depending on where you guys are!

You mean like afternoon for me?

 

[raleh]

Game 1

The Kenora Thistles were the better team in game one of the Foster Hewitt semifinals. Blake, Lach, and Lafleur were the best forward line, Hap Holmes held the fort remarkably well, Marcel Dionne was all over the place, and Red Kelly was his usual self. The Kenora Thistles were a much better team than the Kansas City Scouts.

Unfortunately for the Thistles, they weren't good enough for Bobby Orr. Not even close. From the moment the puck was dropped until he skated off the ice with his head down, embarrassed at the standing ovation he received from the enemies fans on account of his five point night, Bobby Orr was in control of the game.

"I think that ****ing guy had the puck for the entire game" said Thistles right wing Kirk Maltby, "not much you can do when one guy just decides he wants his team to win."
The Thistles came out strongly, with the revamped punch line swarming in the Scouts' zone. They cycled the puck dangerously, but Orr intercepted Lach's pass to Lafleur, spotted Charlie Conacher and fired a laser right onto his stick. Conacher blasted it through Hap Holmes' legs. The Scouts had scored on their first shot in the first shift. The first remained scoreless after that with Orr playing over 12 minutes and controlling the pace of the game the whole time.

Red Kelly and Lafleur scored early in the second period to give Kenora their only lead of the game, but Orr responded less than a minute after Lafleur's goal to tie it up. He finished the period off with a second assist as he burned Griffis with a spin-o-rama and found Taylor who tapped it into the open net. In the third Orr would score twice to complete the hat trick. Orr finished the night with three goals and two first assists in a 5-2 win for Kansas. The future looks dark for the Thistles if they can't find a way to contain this one man wrecking crew.

"I've never seen anything like it" said an awed Maltby, "I can't believe there are people who question the fact that this kid is the best ever"

Kansas City wins game one 5-2
Kansas City leads series 1-0

 

[raleh]

Game 2

If Orr keeps playing like this, they might as well just hand him the Conn Smythe trophy. Game two wasn't as high scoring as the first game as the Thistles realized for the first time in these ATD playoffs that they're not the only ones with offensive abilities. The game plan however, remained the same. They were simply going to try to out gun the Scouts. And it looked like they might have a shot. Kelly and Blake were both on the board within the first ten minutes, but in the second period the score was evened up on goals from Orr and Bill Cowley. Orr's goal was a short handed beauty in which he ragged the puck for over 45 seconds before finding the back of the net. Glen Skov came out of the penalty box laughing hysterically after that one.

Orr controlled the third period in the same way in which he controlled the whole of game one. He played close to 15 minutes in the third and seemed to have the puck the whole time scoring the game winner with 10 minutes remaining. Guy Lafleur was visibly upset and the Pulford-Draper-Maltby line seemed a bit confused with what to do with Orr. Late in the third, Draper pinned Orr against the boards and Maltby leveled him with a low hit. Orr seemed to grimace after the hit as Cowley and Conacher jumped in to defend him.

Asked after the game, Orr had only this to say: "The knee's fine. And if it wasn't, I wouldn't tell you guys."

Kansas City wins game two 3-2
Kansas City leads series 2-0

 

[raleh]

Game 3

Bobby Orr was not neutralized, but the Thistles still found a way to win their first game of the season in Kansas City. The Scouts opened the scoring when Orr got his first of two points, an assist on Hooley Smith's first goal of the series. Smith tipped in Orr's slapshot from the point at the midway point of the first. Then the Thistles top line erupted. It started when a frustrated Blake ran Orr into the boards on the forecheck. Orr coughed up the puck and Blake centred it to Lafleur who one timed it home. Lach and Blake would team up before the period was over and the Thistles entered the second period with a 2-1 lead.

Orr would tie it up late in the second with an end to end rush with Maltby hooking him the whole length of the ice. But Kenora opened the flood gates in the third with goals from Lafleur, Dionne, and Kelly for a 5-2 win. Kelly's goal was almost a carbon copy of Orr's, winding up behind his own net and skating the length of the ice with the puck before turning Ramsay inside out and beating Cheevers stick side.

Kenora wins game three 5-2
Kansas City leads series 2-1

 

[raleh]

Game 4

"I didn't mean to hurt him" said a sombre Clark Gillies after the game, "I was just finishing my check. I don't think I hit him from behind or anything. He definitely saw me coming. It was just unfortunate."

"That's ******** and he knows it!" was Jack Adams' response.

"I'm not sure what happened to be honest." Bobby Orr is staring at his toes in the dressing room. " I went into the corner, and the ice is so bad here. He hit me pretty hard, but my left leg stayed pretty much exactly where it was. I heard my knee pop, but I think it'll be fine for game 5. The doctors here are all super. I don't think it'll be a problem."

The hit that Gillies delivered on Orr will be discussed at length between now and the next game, but the series has certainly turned ugly. The hit, which occurred at 3:06 of the third period resulted in Orr limping to the dressing room and not being seen for the remainder of the game. How much of that can be chalked up to the fact that he had already potted two goals and an assist as his Scouts led 3-0? Only the next couple of days will tell. But the Kansas City Scouts now hold a very comfortable 3-1 lead in the series after Gerry Cheevers' first shut out of the series.

"It's too bad Orr was out for pretty much the whole third period" said Red Kelly after the game, "but in case you didn't notice, we carried the play just about the whole time he was gone. If not for Cheevers we may have won that game in the third period alone."

"I'll be fine" said Orr

Kansas City wins game four 3-0
Kansas City leads series 3-1

 

[Pwnasaurus]

Yikes, I can predict how this one ends when an Orr injury is being used.

 

[raleh]

Game 5

Back in Kenora, the fans were eagerly anticipating game five and wondering as to the status of Orr's left knee. They wouldn't have to wait long. Bill Cowley won the opening draw and kicked it back to Orr. Guy Lafleur was bearing down on him and he tried to quickly avoid him by darting to his left. Orr's cut was clearly very tentative and Lafleur stripped him of the puck and wired a slap shot that looked almost like it went through Gerry Cheevers. The secret was out. Orr was not alright. The Scouts were a bit shell shocked in the first period, but they managed to escape without giving up another goal.

The second period saw the Scouts come to life. They had a chance to end the series early and give Orr a long break before the next series. Joe Malone banged in two goals early the second and the teams entered the third with the Scouts twenty minutes away from advancing to the Foster Hewitt finals.

Red Kelly had different plans. On the first shift of the game, Dionne was kicked out of the faceoff circle. Gillies stepped into take the draw, but Kelly called him out. Kelly won the draw through Doug Jarvis' legs, stepped around him, beat Howell on the outside and tucked a backhand through Cheevers' legs.

Later in the period Orr would take a holding penalty as he latched onto Lafleur who was in the process of burning him on the outside. On the ensuing power play Kelly's blast would find the back of the net to give Kenora a 3-2 lead. Glen Skov would add an empty netter in the final minute.

Kenora wins game five 4-2
Kansas City leads series 3-2

 

[raleh]

Game 6

Red Kelly and Guy Lafleur walked into Kansas city smelling blood.

"I told the guys before the game that we were still the underdogs. I made sure they knew that this team was much stronger than just one person" said Kelly.

Kenora applied the pressure immediately following the opening face off Lach, Blake, and Lafleur were buzzing around the Scouts net giving Mccrimmon and Ramsay fits. Cheevers was able to weather the storm at first, but when Doug Jarvis took a roughing penalty, the Kenora powerplay went to work. Kelly and Tremblay passed back and forth on the point, slowly moving forward. Finally Kelly slapped the puck from the top of the circle. Blake tipped it in and the Thistles had drawn first blood.

Before the game was over, a frustrated Orr would drop the gloves with Gillies in an attempt to get his team back into the game. He handled himself admirably, wrestling Gillies to the ground and getting the draw. Joe Malone and Charlie Conacher both had excellent chances, but Holmes steered them both away on route to a 2-0 shutout.

Dionne would add the insurance goal early in the third with a pretty deke.

Kenora wins game six 2-0
Series tied 3-3

 

[raleh]

Game 7

Bobby Orr was unavailable for comment after the game.

His knee seemed to be better, and he was controlling the game the same way he had early in the series, but Kenora's firepower was just too strong.

The Thistles got goals from all four lines with Lafleur, Dionne, Pulford, and Henderson all scoring. That would be enough to win game seven 4-2. Conacher and Malone were the goal scorers, with both goals assisted by number four.

Paul Henderson scored the game winner early in the third period off of a brilliant Red Kelly feed. Pulford added an empty netter.

"It's disappointing to lose, that's for sure" said Hooley Smith after the game, "but they were just a tremendous team. And when you have the best player to ever lace on skates, and then you lose him half way, your team is bound to flounder. I just feel bad because he's going to blame himself."

"It was a great series" said Red Kelly, "they deserved a far better fate. And Orr. He's just unbelievable. I hope the surgery goes well for him this summer and he'll be back at it next year."

Kenora wins game seven 4-2
Kenora wins series 4-3

Three stars:
1. Bobby Orr
2. Red Kelly
3. Guy Lafleur

 

[Pwnasaurus]

Had to be the outcome after Orr goes down, especially since he came back the following game, if he missed games 5 and 6 I would have thought a miraculous Willis Reed-esque comeback in a Game 7 win was brewing but alas.

Congrats to Paper who built an awesome team and good luck to everyone else the rest of the way. Unlike a few I will certainly not take any jabs at the voters who put a ton of work into the entire process and I value all their opinions tremendously. This was the Scouts last hurrah however and I had a great time in these 3 ATD's and learned a ton about some of the areas I felt I was lacking some solid knowledge in such as some of the older European players and a few pre-war players. I'll finish out voting and following the rest of this one for sure so no worries.

Thanks all.

Pwn.

 

[papershoes]

pwn - if this is indeed your last hurrah (though i hope you'll stick around for more), you certainly finish off with an incredible team. this series could definitely have gone either way.

raleh - thanks for the great write-ups. you had me on the edge of my seat while reading them.

looking forward to the next round.

 

[Spitfire11]

Good luck Pwn, it was fun having you take part in the past few drafts. I thought you made some good teams and this one was one of the top 2 in the draft IMO. Maybe we can swap some jerseys sometime down the road (or some Bobby Orr snowtires).

 

[God Bless Canada]

pwn, if this is it for you (and I hope it isn't), it's been a pleasure. I thought you had a tremendous team in this thing - in fact, I had you pegged to come out of your division. You had a tremendous team.

I hope to see you back next time. You've always been a reliable, consistent, diligent GM. If you aren't back, may your all-ins be successful, may your bluffs be bold, and maybe I'll see you at the World Series of Poker at some point.