Trois-Rivières Lions Lions lose 6-3

[Adam Michaels]

Damn thought that was in. But no goal.

 

[Adam Michaels]

Khisamutdinov is also having a good game. Too many shots wide. But he's in the right spots.

 

[Adam Michaels]

Mathieu Brodeur is one big boy. 6'6" and 225 lbs.

 

[Adam Michaels]

3R pulls the goalie with over 5 minutes left.

 

[Adam Michaels]

GOAL! Montminy makes it 5-3.

A little less than 3 minutes left in the game.

 

[Adam Michaels]

Cormier with a nice save on Arsen.

 

[Adam Michaels]

Growlers add an empty-netter. 6-3.

 

[Adam Michaels]

Growlers look like the team that won the Kelly Cup two years ago.

3R will get better because it was more a question of chemistry. They showed signs of a team who can work well together. But a full game of that might take some time to build. They played better in the second half of the game.

Hillis and Arsen were stand outs. Arsen only needs to work on his accuracy because he can fire that shot, but he missed the net almost every time.


Also, it was nice for the Lions to still get a standing ovation after the game despite the disappointing score.

 

[Adam Michaels]

Will wait for @Vachon23 to give us feedback of his experience in the arena.

 

[Archijerej]

So, what were the lines and D pairings?

 

[Adam Michaels]

So, what were the lines and D pairings?

There never was any posted. Neither online nor on TV.

I think because of the particularities of the ECHL and the limit to game day rosters and a weekly cap hit, it's not as plain as we're used to.

So I think lines and pairings were fluid all night. Guys playing with different guys throughout the game.

 

[Vachon23]

Will wait for @Vachon23 to give us feedback of his experience in the arena.

Amazing ! Extremely surprise for an ECHL game, I don’t know if it will be like that each game, but If you guys can go see game I recommend it ! It was sick !

 

[GrandBison]

Was at the game. Very entertaining, ECHL has nothing to do with our "Slapshot" perception. Impressed by game speed, no staged fight...

Very shaky start, but they also played a well rounded Growlers Teams. Impressed by Arsen K, at that level he is a presence on the ice. Of all the players on the ice, Growlers Marc Johnstone was the most impressive.

 

[beowulf]

Could Poulin not even be an ECHL goalie anymore?

 

[Adam Michaels]

Amazing ! Extremely surprise for an ECHL game, I don’t know if it will be like that each game, but If you guys can go see game I recommend it ! It was sick !

I have friends that live in 3R. And at least one time this season, my family will make the trip there and go attend a game with our friends.

It's also something some in the media (who have watched more ECHL games than others) have said about the league. That it's better than people think. And I hope one thing having a team there will help do is show that the level of talent isn't as bad as some might believe.

Growlers were clearly the better team. And they showed why they won the Kelly Cup in their expansion year. The Leafs/Marlies have really taken advantage of the 3-tier development system. A lot of guys on Newfoundland are on AHL deals. But I hope Habs/Rocket can also take advantage of such a system.

There were times in the game I felt 3R were gelling and were showing signs of a team that, with time, can be fun to watch. If it wasn't for Growlers' goalie Cormier making some amazing saves (one on D'Aoust and one on Khisamutdinov), the game would be different.

And I was happy seeing Hillis and Khisamutdinov look good. I feel both of them were among the standouts.

 

[Adam Michaels]

Could Poulin not even be an ECHL goalie anymore?

Despite the 5 goals against, Poulin made some big saves. I think more than just Poulin, it will also take the team some time to get some synergy. Because the goals weren't only on Poulin. There were some breakdowns defensively.

For example the second goal the Growlers scored, someone on 3R was alone along the half-wall of the defensive zone. Instead of turning to start the transition, he decided to stop and try to turn back to give the puck back to his defender. That delay gave the Growler player a chance to check him and force the turnover. A few moments later, another Growler was in front of the net alone, he gets the puck and scores.

That goal is against Poulin, sure, but it was a defensive zone breakdown.

But it is only one game. It'll take more than one game to see if Poulin is at the very least an ECHL goalie.

 

[ChesterNimitz]

I guess its a case of the apples not falling too far from the tree.