20 minutes of pure adrenalin ....probably the best hockey played by the Devils at home this season. They showed guts, determination, fantastic teamwork, scoring skill and solid defence. But the Devils need to do this much earlier in the game - they won't always be able to turn a 4-2 deficit into a win leaving it late.
Two turning points in the game for me:
1. Bordy is our golden goose and he earned his money last night. Lordo needs to let Bordy loose and play his natural game. The Blaze could not cope with his rampaging, and that crushing, NHL level body check to Jorgensen rocked Blaze and changed the game. Patrick brings so many things to this team apart from his character and experience. Just watch his shifts - he is constantly watching the positioning of other players as well as marking his own man, using his reach to poke the puck to team mates....and actually got some decent shots on goal last night.
2. The second game-changing decision was to roll out our lines in very short, sharp shifts...and drop different players into each line. This changed the style slightly every shift, something that the Blaze could not address. Lordo needs to roll the crash-bang players much more than he does - Bordy, Myers, Haddad, Piggsie and CJ would be so effective if rolled out every 2nd or 3rd shift change.
It works well for the Panthers when they do it!
Some lovely goals - how good was that pass from Culligan for Douce to finish with the beaut of an equalising goal?
A real treat for a packed house.