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Critch · 05-09-2023, 05:27 PM

2040/41 Playoffs Round 1 - Anchorage Huskies v Edmonton Oilers
It's a first playoff meeting with the Edmonton Oilers, mainly because they've not been very good. This is their first time back-to-back in the playoffs in almost 20 seasons, they haven't won a series in the playoffs since Draisaitl and McDavid retired 10 years ago, and even when they had those two they still were inconsistent. So we haven't played them in the playoffs because they rarely make it and don't hang around when they do. Hopefully this isn't their year to change that.

They seem to have a number of good young players (high draft picks every year will do that), but they've been signing older top free agents to pad it out, 30yo LW Ashley Muzzin from Washington and 32yo Center Frans Karjalahti from Atlanta, alongside their own draft picks RD Charlie Tearall and LW Elvin Washington. Both Tearall and Washington come in carrying injuries, the AI seems to be a lot more into delaying treatment and leaving players playing injured than I am, Washington's injury seems quite severe to play through, an elbow injury that'll take 2 months to recover from when he starts resting.

Edmonton finished 4th in the Pacific Division, 11 points behind the Huskies. They scored one more goal than Anchorage in the regular season (289v288), but conceded 53 more (252v199). Anchorage have always been pretty conservative and defensive, they do play a lot of not very attacking forwards.

Game 1 - Edmonton Oilers 2 Anchorage Huskies 6
Anchorage will be missing winger Jeff Martin, he's been out since February and probably wont be back til the start of next season. He' injury prone and we pay him over 7mil per season. Michael Jackson puts Anchorage ahead at 4:47, but the strangely named Edmonton center Jeffrey Coonishish gets them back to 1-1 at the end of the first. Anchorage get into a good lead in the second, three goals without reply. Joni-Jukka Timonen, August Pettersson and Enzo Landrey make it 4-1 by the end of the first. All four of the Anchorage scorers so far are free agents in the summer. Into the third Coonishish gets one back, but Mark Dollack and Alexander Broda score and game one is safely won. Edmonton actually outshot Anchorage, but Anchorage scored 6 goals on 29 shots. The Edmonton goalie, Tommy McLean, isnt very good.

Game 2 - Edmonton Oilers 3 Anchorage Huskies 4 Overtime
Bad news for Anchorage on the injury front, David Prudek is out short term. Worse news for Edmonton is that they're top center and assist man Frans Karjalahti is done for the season. Edmonton lead 1-0 after the first with a goal from Jackson Smith. In the second Joni-Jukka Timonen scores his second goal of the playoffs, after managing 4 in 70 regular season games, but Edmonton score again to lead 2-1 after the second period, Harrison Smith scores for them. It doesnt say if Harrison Smith is Jackson Smith's brother, but Jackson and Harrison sound like they've been named by the same parents. Into the third and it's 3-1 Edmonton but not another Smith brother, this time it's Ryan Huss. He is from the same town as the Smith boys so maybe a cousin (all three have Calgary AB listed as their hometown). It's 3-1 Edmonton going into the last 5 minutes but Anssi Ridanpaa scores to make it 3-2, Mark Dollack ties it up with a power play goal at 18:42, and we're off to overtime. It doesn't last long, 25 seconds in Borje Svensson scores and Anchorage take a 2-0 series lead.

Game 3 - Anchorage Huskies 0 Edmonton Oilers 3
Edmonton might be beat up, but they're not out yet. They score a 5-on-3 power play goal in the first, they have a 5-on-3 advantage for 1 minute 20 before scoring, then add another power play goal in the second. An even strength goal in the third and it's all over, Edmonton's previously discounted goalie Tommy McLean saving all 32 shots he faced. When I was a kid one of my favorite soccer players was called Tommy McLean. Probably not a relation.

Game 4 - Anchorage Huskies 5 Edmonton Oilers 3
It's time to shake up the defensive lines, top liner Matt Leader (the man who covers while Henry Mews dodders around the ice like Mr Magoo) picks up an injury and will be out short term. Our Russian rookie Dennis Molotov is in to set the game alight like something explosive. Another young defenseman, 23 year old Czech Martin Pospisil makes it 1-0 to Anchorage, Edmonton equalize with yet another power play goal, but a Russian rookie gives us the lead. It's 21 year old LW Yegor Grebenkov (in because Martin and Prudek are out so we're short of Left Wingers). Into the second period and Edmonton race back into it, Harrison Smith scores (and assist from his "brother") to tie it up, they score again at 9:01 and it's 3-2 Edmonton. It doesn't last long, Jordan Gavin scores his first of the playoffs (with an assist from Henry Mews, his first of the playoffs) within 2 mins, and August Pettersson scores a go ahead goal for Anchorage before the end of the second. A late empty net goal from Borje Svensson and Anchorage are 3-1 up in the series. Just like we were 3-1 up in last season's Stanley Cup final. Grumble.

Game 5 - Edmonton Oilers 3 Anchorage Huskies 4
Joni-Jukka Timonen is out now, we're 2 defensemen down since Leader is still out. In comes long time Anchorage backup John Fireman, he's just back from injury and not 100% himself. The first period passes scoreless, but Anchorage race out into a lead in the second period, Henry Mews at 4:05, Enzo Landrey at 4:36 and Michael Jackson at 12:29. Past the halfway point and we're 3-0 up in the game and 3-1 up in the series. It's almost all over, even when Bryce Collins scores for Edmonton late in the second. Midway through the third and it's game-on, another power play goal for Edmonton, Bryce Collins again. Five minuted later it's all tied up, another power play goal for Edmonton and it's Bryce Collins completing his hattrick. We're heading towards overtime when Anchorage get their first power play of the game, Henry Mews scores and, after holding on for 2 more minutes, the series is over.

We'll now have a few days off to recover, hopefully get Prudek, Timonen and Leader back fit, and work on the penalty kill. We've conceded 5 goals in the last 7 Edmonton power plays.

Next up it'll be Vancouver, they get by Vegas in seven games. Anchorage will have had a full seven days off allowing injuries to heal before the first game of that series, it's good to win quickly.

05-09-2023, 05:27 PM	#105
Critch lolzcat Join Date: Oct 2000 Location: Herndon, VA	2040/41 Playoffs Round 1 - Anchorage Huskies v Edmonton Oilers It's a first playoff meeting with the Edmonton Oilers, mainly because they've not been very good. This is their first time back-to-back in the playoffs in almost 20 seasons, they haven't won a series in the playoffs since Draisaitl and McDavid retired 10 years ago, and even when they had those two they still were inconsistent. So we haven't played them in the playoffs because they rarely make it and don't hang around when they do. Hopefully this isn't their year to change that. They seem to have a number of good young players (high draft picks every year will do that), but they've been signing older top free agents to pad it out, 30yo LW Ashley Muzzin from Washington and 32yo Center Frans Karjalahti from Atlanta, alongside their own draft picks RD Charlie Tearall and LW Elvin Washington. Both Tearall and Washington come in carrying injuries, the AI seems to be a lot more into delaying treatment and leaving players playing injured than I am, Washington's injury seems quite severe to play through, an elbow injury that'll take 2 months to recover from when he starts resting. Edmonton finished 4th in the Pacific Division, 11 points behind the Huskies. They scored one more goal than Anchorage in the regular season (289v288), but conceded 53 more (252v199). Anchorage have always been pretty conservative and defensive, they do play a lot of not very attacking forwards. Game 1 - Edmonton Oilers 2 Anchorage Huskies 6 Anchorage will be missing winger Jeff Martin, he's been out since February and probably wont be back til the start of next season. He' injury prone and we pay him over 7mil per season. Michael Jackson puts Anchorage ahead at 4:47, but the strangely named Edmonton center Jeffrey Coonishish gets them back to 1-1 at the end of the first. Anchorage get into a good lead in the second, three goals without reply. Joni-Jukka Timonen, August Pettersson and Enzo Landrey make it 4-1 by the end of the first. All four of the Anchorage scorers so far are free agents in the summer. Into the third Coonishish gets one back, but Mark Dollack and Alexander Broda score and game one is safely won. Edmonton actually outshot Anchorage, but Anchorage scored 6 goals on 29 shots. The Edmonton goalie, Tommy McLean, isnt very good. Game 2 - Edmonton Oilers 3 Anchorage Huskies 4 Overtime Bad news for Anchorage on the injury front, David Prudek is out short term. Worse news for Edmonton is that they're top center and assist man Frans Karjalahti is done for the season. Edmonton lead 1-0 after the first with a goal from Jackson Smith. In the second Joni-Jukka Timonen scores his second goal of the playoffs, after managing 4 in 70 regular season games, but Edmonton score again to lead 2-1 after the second period, Harrison Smith scores for them. It doesnt say if Harrison Smith is Jackson Smith's brother, but Jackson and Harrison sound like they've been named by the same parents. Into the third and it's 3-1 Edmonton but not another Smith brother, this time it's Ryan Huss. He is from the same town as the Smith boys so maybe a cousin (all three have Calgary AB listed as their hometown). It's 3-1 Edmonton going into the last 5 minutes but Anssi Ridanpaa scores to make it 3-2, Mark Dollack ties it up with a power play goal at 18:42, and we're off to overtime. It doesn't last long, 25 seconds in Borje Svensson scores and Anchorage take a 2-0 series lead. Game 3 - Anchorage Huskies 0 Edmonton Oilers 3 Edmonton might be beat up, but they're not out yet. They score a 5-on-3 power play goal in the first, they have a 5-on-3 advantage for 1 minute 20 before scoring, then add another power play goal in the second. An even strength goal in the third and it's all over, Edmonton's previously discounted goalie Tommy McLean saving all 32 shots he faced. When I was a kid one of my favorite soccer players was called Tommy McLean. Probably not a relation. Game 4 - Anchorage Huskies 5 Edmonton Oilers 3 It's time to shake up the defensive lines, top liner Matt Leader (the man who covers while Henry Mews dodders around the ice like Mr Magoo) picks up an injury and will be out short term. Our Russian rookie Dennis Molotov is in to set the game alight like something explosive. Another young defenseman, 23 year old Czech Martin Pospisil makes it 1-0 to Anchorage, Edmonton equalize with yet another power play goal, but a Russian rookie gives us the lead. It's 21 year old LW Yegor Grebenkov (in because Martin and Prudek are out so we're short of Left Wingers). Into the second period and Edmonton race back into it, Harrison Smith scores (and assist from his "brother") to tie it up, they score again at 9:01 and it's 3-2 Edmonton. It doesn't last long, Jordan Gavin scores his first of the playoffs (with an assist from Henry Mews, his first of the playoffs) within 2 mins, and August Pettersson scores a go ahead goal for Anchorage before the end of the second. A late empty net goal from Borje Svensson and Anchorage are 3-1 up in the series. Just like we were 3-1 up in last season's Stanley Cup final. Grumble. Game 5 - Edmonton Oilers 3 Anchorage Huskies 4 Joni-Jukka Timonen is out now, we're 2 defensemen down since Leader is still out. In comes long time Anchorage backup John Fireman, he's just back from injury and not 100% himself. The first period passes scoreless, but Anchorage race out into a lead in the second period, Henry Mews at 4:05, Enzo Landrey at 4:36 and Michael Jackson at 12:29. Past the halfway point and we're 3-0 up in the game and 3-1 up in the series. It's almost all over, even when Bryce Collins scores for Edmonton late in the second. Midway through the third and it's game-on, another power play goal for Edmonton, Bryce Collins again. Five minuted later it's all tied up, another power play goal for Edmonton and it's Bryce Collins completing his hattrick. We're heading towards overtime when Anchorage get their first power play of the game, Henry Mews scores and, after holding on for 2 more minutes, the series is over. We'll now have a few days off to recover, hopefully get Prudek, Timonen and Leader back fit, and work on the penalty kill. We've conceded 5 goals in the last 7 Edmonton power plays. Next up it'll be Vancouver, they get by Vegas in seven games. Anchorage will have had a full seven days off allowing injuries to heal before the first game of that series, it's good to win quickly.