He was confident that San Jose would prevail if they executed. Their ability to check won them the series. “Like Joe (Thornton) was saying, this team is a little bit different”.
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“We made some exhausted decisions late in games, late in periods, late in shifts that we hadn’t made”.
In 71 career playoff games, including 18 this season, Ward has 46 points (20 goals, 26 assists).
And one area where it seemed the Blues had the advantage – goaltending – proved to not be the case with Martin Jones leading the Sharks into the finals while Brian Elliott and Jake Allen couldn’t get it done. This, for any Leafs’ fan, is a win-win situation, and quite frankly, I can’t remember another year when I could honestly say that. They set a franchise-record with three straight regular seasons of 107 or more points and fill Scottrade Center to capacity on most nights, but a shot at the Stanley Cup remains an elusive goal. It turned out we were better on the road (6-4).
As for playoff competition, he is 62-30-32 in 124 playoff games.
“Ward is just a big-time player”, San Jose center Joe Thornton said.
Bouwmeester was particularly victimized by the Sharks on numerous occasions including the opening goal as he finished a minus-six for the series despite playing almost 25 minutes per contest.
Coach Ken Hitchcock was on a one-year contract and captain David Backes, last seen in an emotional heartfelt media session Wednesday following the Game 6 defeat, can become an unrestricted free agent July 1. Game 5 is a tough one to swallow. In nearly every series, there is a team or player that I hope to see prove their worth in the playoffs, and either shut up narrow-minded commentators, or statistics naysayers.
WINNING FOR HOMETOWN: The Blues were the ideal antidote when St. Louis needed them most in the wake of the Rams’ departure for Los Angeles.
Regardless of who wins the East, it’s hard not to root for the Sharks, and for their core that has suffered through so many seasons of failure and disappointment. We do have a team that’s of championship caliber and we fell short. They battled injuries all year long, yet stayed near the top of the Western Conference. “When you don’t finish and you’re not celebrating with champagne and hoisting a cup up, it’s disappointing”. “That’s a heck of a team that’s taken their game to a whole other level and played a really good series”. We showed our high-water mark in Game 4. For me to get a chance to be beside them day to day is an unbelievable experience for myself. They got the job done. Each has shone in his own way in these playoffs, and their appearance in the Final should put to rest, once and forever, any suggestion they’re somehow lesser players because of the franchise’s past failures.
“We’re just enjoying the ride right now”, Marleau added.
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