Panthers Vs Devils - Wed 26 Sept - League

Wannabe2

Well-Known Member
We must never rule out Giants, Clan beat Panthers at theirs, Flyers can be very good when on form, Storm well we can never rule them out, Flames well they can upset most, Blaze have beaten us, so there’s a few banana skins there.
 

august04

Well-Known Member
I think both us and Nottingham are very well matched and a class apart from the rest. The league title will come down to who’s the most consistent over 60 games. My opinion is that will be the Devils and we’ll retain the league title with a bit to spare. Nottingham will be incredibly dangerous in the challenge cup/play off games, much as they were in the Cam Janssen season, when they dominated us at times and always impressed whenever they played us - but weren’t consistent enough throughout the whole season to challenge for the league title. We’ve seen signs of that already where they’ve slipped up against supposed lesser teams. That’s how I see things panning out anyway, at this early stage.
 
Nottingham out chanced us massively and our two goal lead flattered us, much in the way their two goal lead flattered them in the home game earlier in the month.

Bowns was excellent. He placed so many rebounds in the right places and was very sharp. Admittedly I haven't seen the replay but without Bowns we'd have lost that by far more than one.

Give them credit, Nottingham forechecked like hell and their compete level was much higher than ours when it mattered and they got the crowd back into the game. We blew a two goal lead twice because Nottingham wanted it more.

Batch was absolutely everywhere and was my Man of the Match. Skated hard, finished all his checks cleanly and couldn't have done any more to help us win the game. Richie getting that penalty was unfortunate as it meant Blood and Louis killing almost the entire 5v3 and it was written on the wall that the puck luck we had early on would soon wear off.

Based on the leads, we should have at least got a point, but outside of the first period we didn't want it as much as the Panthers and got what we deserved out of it. Zero points and lessons to learn.
 
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RedDevil17

Well-Known Member
Highlights:

You can see for their 1st and 2nd goals Reddick was at fault for both their goals but it was a good goal he scored. We scored some nice goals and a good scrap from Louis even though he lost. Still lots of turnovers though and our D play goes to show how much we miss Strachan and Hotham
 

Wagstaff

Well-Known Member
Have to say I wasn’t really enjoying the game that much till the 3rd period. TV is nowhere near the live experience, but Panthers stepping up the physicality turned the game and I really Jate to say they deserved the win by the end.
I love Bownsy and would love to see him between the pipes in Blue and I think he saved the game at the start but the panthers were just too strong at the end.
Their second was an absolute ripper that Bownsy never even moved for
 

mjh

Well-Known Member
Good to have rivalry in the league as I’m not sure Sheffield will be anywhere near us this year. Third period Panthers went up a couple of gears and we didn’t match them. Only one loss. We’ll bounce back quickly I’m sure. Would have liked a stay at home D Man signed but we’ve got more than enough to nail the league this year imo. Also good to see the game covered on tv. Can only lead to growth in interest.
 

KaneDevils

Well-Known Member
Well, it's been sometime since I've watched an ice hockey match, except from nhl. But I'm finding myself in disagreement with some of you, which is nothing new. Ha ha. Firstly, I don't think the game was a good advert for British hockey at all. Despite the dramatic end to the game I thought considering it was between two of the top teams, including the current league and playoff champs, the game was pretty dire. I've never seen so many misplaced passes/turnovers in all my days. Nottingham for 2 periods were pretty woeful and devils, for me, gave it away in the 3rd when I expected them to close the game out. I'm pretty sure bowns would want goals 3 and 4 back too, tbh. I'm still think haddad is probably our best player, him and Martin. Not impressed with a few, but I won't mention their names. Overall good to see a game at long last, but far from a high standard classic.
 
It's interesting to see some of the perspectives here... both for and against your team and their performance last night.

Personally, I think that the two results we've had so far between these two teams (the pre-season stuff being largely irrelevant) almost tell the story... two hard-fought games where the home team wins by just one goal. 2 points each, honours even.
I think it's pointless to describe either side as 'superior' or as having some kind of guaranteed advantage over the full season... whilst similar in many ways, both teams have their own particular strengths, and I don't see any clear winner already.

The Devils have an initial advantage, in that they have brought into this season a team that has largely played together for some time... your team cohesion is currently superior - the teamwork is fantastic, the 'bread and butter' plays are carried out much more smoothly. This appears to be more obvious in the defence than the offence - from what I've seen so far, I believe that the Cardiff defence overall is currently the best in the league - but it carries right through the team. Is the skill level of the Devils higher? - pass, think it's too close to call... but I think that they are closer to their full potential than anyone else right now, which is an advantage. Unfortunately for the Devils, that advantage is going to be eroded as the season wears on and other teams (including the Panthers) improve their overall teamwork - the gap will narrow.

The main advantage of the Panthers is physicality... and, almost more importantly, having said physicality without losing either speed or skill. One of the strengths of the Panthers' game last night was the incessant bodychecking, which has to wear down the opposition to some extent (probably less with Cardiff than some others, but even so...). It's possible that the Panthers' offence is a bit more deadly than that of the Devils... but that one is really too close to call. Sure as hell, no netminder can relax for a second if the Panthers have the puck - Ben Bowns is a superb netminder (I simply cannot understand all of the criticism of him) but even he got caught flat-footed by some of our snipers. Not an easy thing to do...

That was a damned good game, and one in which both teams showed that they can really play hockey. I'd like to think that the belief held by some that these are the two main challengers for the league title is true, but I'm too wary of potential banana skins to fall for that one. There are teams out there who will exploit any perceived weakness, and all teams can have an off night (or more than one!).

Good game, two good teams, great entertainment and a good night overall. As a Panthers fan, I'm obviously happy with the result (much happier than with my first trip to IAW a few weeks ago!) but I'm even happier with the overall product that got seen around the country on TV. More of the same to come, I hope!
 

kingmo19.1

Well-Known Member
To be honest, I'm glad the Panthers are super competitive this season. Last season I think we all knew months before the season ended that we'd already won the title barring a complete capitulation. At least this season will be more interesting.
 

Temme

Well-Known Member
Fight result irrelevant for me.

The worst player on the ice last night managed to get Louis to drop the gloves and we were missing a key D man for 5 minutes.

Can't imagine Coach nor captain were too happy!!!
 

RedDevil17

Well-Known Member
Fight result irrelevant for me.

The worst player on the ice last night managed to get Louis to drop the gloves and we were missing a key D man for 5 minutes.

Can't imagine Coach nor captain were too happy!!!
For anyone questioning that decision, that ‘worst player’ managed to get their team and fans going in the 2nd period hence why they out scored us and had the better of the play in both the 2nd and 3rd. Doty wasn’t the worst player on the ice for me, someone on our team was but I’m not naming names! Like it or not, that is Doty’s role on the team, to get the crowd and his team going when needed and he did exactly that! He may not be the best skater but we’ve had worse...especially last year! Think you all know who I’m on about
 
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jimmy snels

Well-Known Member
we went from the fight and scored didnt we :rolleyes:
it was the panthers incessant hitting that changed that game not the scrap.
tell you for free if farayna was on the ice after that hit on hedden he'd have stuck up for his mate. its not about fighting its about intent. we didnt have enough of that in that game.
criticism of linglet IN THIS GAME very justified. on the whole been a good player but he had a stinker wednesday. everyone has them. im certainly no worried as he's clearly a star player.

my feeling is we'll motor into teams next 2 games. lord wont be impressed with the feeling we were out muscled and out hit. we usually see reactions. i look forward to it :)
 

Slartibartfast

Well-Known Member
Highlights:

You can see for their 1st and 2nd goals Reddick was at fault for both their goals but it was a good goal he scored. We scored some nice goals and a good scrap from Louis even though he lost. Still lots of turnovers though and our D play goes to show how much we miss Strachan and Hotham
After watching that I tend to agree. He was out of position on the first and went the wrong way on the second open up the gap for a shot. But I still think he is a decent enough player. He's fast and has a good skill set and is good offensively. The only thing he lacks is size. I think he gets a hard time from some on here.
 

Rich Best

Well-Known Member
For anyone questioning that decision, that ‘worst player’ managed to get their team and fans going in the 2nd period hence why they out scored us and had the better of the play in both the 2nd and 3rd. Doty wasn’t the worst player on the ice for me, someone on our team was but I’m not naming names! Like it or not, that is Doty’s role on the team, to get the crowd and his team going when needed and he did exactly that! He may not be the best skater but we’ve had worse...especially last year! Think you all know who I’m on about
No I don't know who you are on about? Who?
 
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