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PFellah · 01-13-2019, 07:07 AM

March 2019: Birds Soar Into Playoffs, Catch Toronto For Atlantic Lead

The month starts with the roster in weird shape. Kesler out for a while. Rick Nash out for... who knows? Down to six defensemen, but would rather ride it out because DeMelo is the guy I want to bring him up, but he's day-to-day and I can't promote him because he's injured. The CPU and I can't reach an agreeement on whether Pominville is really an upgrade on Pitlick. Let's get to work.

3/2 at Dallas – 3-2 W (SO)
The retooled Firebirds start March with a scrappy shootout win in Dallas. The visitors fall behind 2-1 but Mark Letestu gets the equalizer early in the third and Jesper Fast wins it in the shootout.

Between games, we got a bit of good news on Rick Nash; turns out he’ll only be out a few more days – the 7th, specifically. We can hang on that long. DeMelo will also be back shortly, so we’ll try to plow with six defensemen until he’s ready for a callup.

3/5 vs Ottawa – 4-3 W (SO)
Despite being out of contention, Ottawa proves to be surprisingly feisty, but the Firebirds eventually come out on top. The Sens roll up a 3-0 lead by the early stages of the 2nd, before the Firebirds get things going, but then Lowry, Healthy Nash, and Lowry again get it back. Craig Smith provides the difference maker in penalty shots.

We’ve got a stretch coming up against the league’s elite – Nashville, Washington, Toronto, and Chicago are our next four – so this is the right time to get Rick Nash back. The CPU chooses Darren Helm as the odd man out, and I have no reason to dispute that. Though the CPU favors Pitlick over Pominville, and I kinda want to play the rental acquisition.

3/7 at Nashville – 3-2 L (SO)
Twice the Firebirds took leads on the Predators (including a shorthanded goal by Craig Smith), but they could never get that extra insurance goal, and twice the Predators answered back. Atlanta even had a chance to win in OT as Perron had wide open net on a rebound but couldn’t lift the puck over a sprawled-on-the-ice Pekka Rinne’s pad. Filip Forsberg scored the only goal of the shootout for the Nashville win.

3/8 vs Washington – 5-1 W
Washington puts backup Pheonix Copley in net and the Firebirds take fuil advantage, putting 38 shots on the rookie. Perron and Smith stake the Birds to a 2-0 first-period lead, and three goals in the third make it the margin more comfortable.

3/10 at Toronto – 6-3 W
Toronto is one of the league’s best teams and Frederik Andersen is one of the league’s best goalies, but tonight, they got absolutely shelled. HATS OFF to David Perron, who scores the first hat trick in team history (and hit the pipes on a 4th); Hayes, DeAngelo, and Riley Nash also scored. Wide open offense on both sides as the Leafs put 44 shots on Grubauer.

And before our next game, reinforcements arrive from the minors as Dylan DeMelo, Scourge Of The Trade Block, gets the call from Birmingham. He’ll wear #74 and start on the third pair with Tony DeAngelo. THE KILLER De’S!

3/12 at Chigago – 4-1 L
Win #40 on the season is a doozy. OK, I’m not sure how to process this. 5-0-1 for the month against (mostly) the best teams in the league… without Ryan Kesler. Hayes, Pominville (his first point, I believe), Riley Nash, and Fast with the goals. Duncan Keith scored with 4:41 left in the game to spoil the shutout. (NOTE: I’m realizing I forgot to look at Pominville’s stats in the immediate wake of his trade, and if the game has splits, I haven’t seen ‘em, soI’ll allow 11 G 22 A as the closest thing to a starting point. It’s not like he’s going to go off for 30 and end up in the league leaders anyway.)

Between games, Nashville waives defenseman Paul LaDue. On one hand, I could use the organizational depth after the deals I made, and I have salary cap space. On the other hand, not sure I need to tie up 3 years @ $1.325M for a guy who’s pretty much done growing and whose ceiling appears to be roster filler. I’d rather have my filler either have room to grow, or shorter contracts.

3/15 at Minnesota – 2-1 W
Minnesota did add Max Pacioretty to give them some scoring punch, but it doesn’t help them here as Grubby turns back 35 of 36 shots. Riley Nash and Fast score in the first and the Firebirds coast from there.

3/17 at Anaheim – 3-1 W
KEEP ‘EM COMING. Cogliano and Kerdiles trade goals in the 1st but Lowry and Smith add insurance.

Draft rankings? You’re bothering me with this NOW?

3/18 vs Buffalo – 3-2 L
Ah well. Had to end some time. Zemgus Girgensons scores with 4:19 left to hand Atlanta its first defeat of the month. Hayes gets his 19th and Cogliano his 14th in the losing effort. At least it wasn't Hallander scoring the game-winner?

3/22 vs Florida – 3-2 L
Back to back losses. Colton Sceviour gives Florida the lead they’ll never relinquish early in the second, and Aleksander Barkov adds an insurance goal early in the third. Tony DeAngelo gets one back a few minutes after Barkov's, but the equalizer never comes.

A few days earlier than advertised, KESLER’S BACK! Of course, robbing Peter to pay Paul, Craig Smith goes down with an injury, so we’re still not at full strength. For the moment, just means Pominville and Pitlick both get to play.

3/24 at Calgary – 3-1 W
Exciting finish as Jesper Fast scores with 51 seconds left, and Kevin Hayes adds an empty-netter to provide some cushion.

3/25 vs New York Rangers – 3-2 W
Atlanta rolls out to a 3-0 lead and things are looking good. But the Rangers’ Pavel Buchnevich scores a pair (24 and 25 on the season) in the second period to put the Rangers back in the hunt. However defense (on both sides wins out down the stretch) and 3-2 stands up as the final margin.

Craig Smith will be out a few more games (broken nose – April 1) and Alex Petrovic joins him on the shelf with a sore knee (April 4). Neither represents a crisis, just means Pitlick and Bieksa (respectively) will get a few starts.

3/28 at San Jose – 4-2 W
The Firebirds are OFFICIALLY headed for the post-season. DeMelo and Perron score within the first five minutes, and after the Sharks’ Tierney cuts the lead to 2-1, Djoos and Fast score late in Period 2 to restore a margin of safety. At 96 points, they can fall no further than 3rd place, so.... they're in.

And ohbytheway Craig Smith is already back. Don't want to complain about a positive development, but our team doctor needs to work on his estimates.

3/29 at Pittsburgh – 3-2 L (SO)
Ryan Kesler picks a dramatic time to score his first goal since returning, scoring with 42 seconds left to tie the game and send it to overtime. But the Pens’ Olli Maata proves to be the unlikely hero of the shootout, forcing the Firebirds to leave town with one point instead of two.

So there it is. The single biggest development is making the playoffs, but we've also caught up to Toronto for the division lead. The month ends with us and Toronto at 97 points, and Tampa Bay at 96, and then a BIG jump to the rest of the field, meaning we'll finish somewhere between 1st and 3rd. The last five games are all about seeding, but we'll look at the playoff picture more in a separate note.

MONTHLY SUMMARY

STANDINGS REPORT
MONTH: 10-2-2
YEAR-TO-DATE: 45-25-7, 97 points
DIVISION: Division: TIED for first with Toronto. Tampa sits one point back at 96, but then there’s a big drop off – Florida 85, Boston 84, Buffalo 81. Montreal 80. Clinched a Top 3 finish, so we’re definitely going to the playoffs.
CONFERENCE: : 4th overall in points, but tied with Toronto. Columbus 104, Pittsburgh 102, Toronto 97, Atlanta 97, Tampa Bay 96, Carolina 89, Islanders 88, Panthers 85. ITPST, we would host Tampa Bay.

TEAM LEADERS

POINTS: Perron 60, Kesler 55, Fast 52, Rick Nash 46, Sbruev 46
GOALS: Kesler 24, Rick Nash 20, Hayes 20 (9 for us), Perron 19, Riley Nash 18, Fast 18, Sbruev 18
ASSISTS: Perron 41, Fast 34, Kesler 31, Sbruev 28, Riley Nash 27
PLUS-MINUS: Djoos 22, Petrovic 17, Riley Nash 14, Murphy 13, Perron 11.

ON THE FARM
Birmingham hasn’t clinched a playoff spot but are sitting in 2nd in their division and 4th in the Eastern conference. Nail Yakupov moved in front of Dominik Simon for the team scoring lead, 63-60, but Simon still leads the team in goals with 25. Ullmark’s rate stats have dipped a little – I’d probably blame trading Gustafsson and calling up DeMelo more than Ullmark’s innate talent level.

01-13-2019, 07:07 AM	#32
PFellah Rookie OVR: 5 Join Date: Oct 2011 Location: Pittsburgh, PA	Re: Third Time's The Charm(?) - Atlanta Firebirds March 2019: Birds Soar Into Playoffs, Catch Toronto For Atlantic Lead The month starts with the roster in weird shape. Kesler out for a while. Rick Nash out for... who knows? Down to six defensemen, but would rather ride it out because DeMelo is the guy I want to bring him up, but he's day-to-day and I can't promote him because he's injured. The CPU and I can't reach an agreeement on whether Pominville is really an upgrade on Pitlick. Let's get to work. 3/2 at Dallas – 3-2 W (SO) The retooled Firebirds start March with a scrappy shootout win in Dallas. The visitors fall behind 2-1 but Mark Letestu gets the equalizer early in the third and Jesper Fast wins it in the shootout. Between games, we got a bit of good news on Rick Nash; turns out he’ll only be out a few more days – the 7th, specifically. We can hang on that long. DeMelo will also be back shortly, so we’ll try to plow with six defensemen until he’s ready for a callup. 3/5 vs Ottawa – 4-3 W (SO) Despite being out of contention, Ottawa proves to be surprisingly feisty, but the Firebirds eventually come out on top. The Sens roll up a 3-0 lead by the early stages of the 2nd, before the Firebirds get things going, but then Lowry, Healthy Nash, and Lowry again get it back. Craig Smith provides the difference maker in penalty shots. We’ve got a stretch coming up against the league’s elite – Nashville, Washington, Toronto, and Chicago are our next four – so this is the right time to get Rick Nash back. The CPU chooses Darren Helm as the odd man out, and I have no reason to dispute that. Though the CPU favors Pitlick over Pominville, and I kinda want to play the rental acquisition. 3/7 at Nashville – 3-2 L (SO) Twice the Firebirds took leads on the Predators (including a shorthanded goal by Craig Smith), but they could never get that extra insurance goal, and twice the Predators answered back. Atlanta even had a chance to win in OT as Perron had wide open net on a rebound but couldn’t lift the puck over a sprawled-on-the-ice Pekka Rinne’s pad. Filip Forsberg scored the only goal of the shootout for the Nashville win. 3/8 vs Washington – 5-1 W Washington puts backup Pheonix Copley in net and the Firebirds take fuil advantage, putting 38 shots on the rookie. Perron and Smith stake the Birds to a 2-0 first-period lead, and three goals in the third make it the margin more comfortable. 3/10 at Toronto – 6-3 W Toronto is one of the league’s best teams and Frederik Andersen is one of the league’s best goalies, but tonight, they got absolutely shelled. HATS OFF to David Perron, who scores the first hat trick in team history (and hit the pipes on a 4th); Hayes, DeAngelo, and Riley Nash also scored. Wide open offense on both sides as the Leafs put 44 shots on Grubauer. And before our next game, reinforcements arrive from the minors as Dylan DeMelo, Scourge Of The Trade Block, gets the call from Birmingham. He’ll wear #74 and start on the third pair with Tony DeAngelo. THE KILLER De’S! 3/12 at Chigago – 4-1 L Win #40 on the season is a doozy. OK, I’m not sure how to process this. 5-0-1 for the month against (mostly) the best teams in the league… without Ryan Kesler. Hayes, Pominville (his first point, I believe), Riley Nash, and Fast with the goals. Duncan Keith scored with 4:41 left in the game to spoil the shutout. (NOTE: I’m realizing I forgot to look at Pominville’s stats in the immediate wake of his trade, and if the game has splits, I haven’t seen ‘em, soI’ll allow 11 G 22 A as the closest thing to a starting point. It’s not like he’s going to go off for 30 and end up in the league leaders anyway.) Between games, Nashville waives defenseman Paul LaDue. On one hand, I could use the organizational depth after the deals I made, and I have salary cap space. On the other hand, not sure I need to tie up 3 years @ $1.325M for a guy who’s pretty much done growing and whose ceiling appears to be roster filler. I’d rather have my filler either have room to grow, or shorter contracts. 3/15 at Minnesota – 2-1 W Minnesota did add Max Pacioretty to give them some scoring punch, but it doesn’t help them here as Grubby turns back 35 of 36 shots. Riley Nash and Fast score in the first and the Firebirds coast from there. 3/17 at Anaheim – 3-1 W KEEP ‘EM COMING. Cogliano and Kerdiles trade goals in the 1st but Lowry and Smith add insurance. Draft rankings? You’re bothering me with this NOW? 3/18 vs Buffalo – 3-2 L Ah well. Had to end some time. Zemgus Girgensons scores with 4:19 left to hand Atlanta its first defeat of the month. Hayes gets his 19th and Cogliano his 14th in the losing effort. At least it wasn't Hallander scoring the game-winner? 3/22 vs Florida – 3-2 L Back to back losses. Colton Sceviour gives Florida the lead they’ll never relinquish early in the second, and Aleksander Barkov adds an insurance goal early in the third. Tony DeAngelo gets one back a few minutes after Barkov's, but the equalizer never comes. A few days earlier than advertised, KESLER’S BACK! Of course, robbing Peter to pay Paul, Craig Smith goes down with an injury, so we’re still not at full strength. For the moment, just means Pominville and Pitlick both get to play. 3/24 at Calgary – 3-1 W Exciting finish as Jesper Fast scores with 51 seconds left, and Kevin Hayes adds an empty-netter to provide some cushion. 3/25 vs New York Rangers – 3-2 W Atlanta rolls out to a 3-0 lead and things are looking good. But the Rangers’ Pavel Buchnevich scores a pair (24 and 25 on the season) in the second period to put the Rangers back in the hunt. However defense (on both sides wins out down the stretch) and 3-2 stands up as the final margin. Craig Smith will be out a few more games (broken nose – April 1) and Alex Petrovic joins him on the shelf with a sore knee (April 4). Neither represents a crisis, just means Pitlick and Bieksa (respectively) will get a few starts. 3/28 at San Jose – 4-2 W The Firebirds are OFFICIALLY headed for the post-season. DeMelo and Perron score within the first five minutes, and after the Sharks’ Tierney cuts the lead to 2-1, Djoos and Fast score late in Period 2 to restore a margin of safety. At 96 points, they can fall no further than 3rd place, so.... they're in. And ohbytheway Craig Smith is already back. Don't want to complain about a positive development, but our team doctor needs to work on his estimates. 3/29 at Pittsburgh – 3-2 L (SO) Ryan Kesler picks a dramatic time to score his first goal since returning, scoring with 42 seconds left to tie the game and send it to overtime. But the Pens’ Olli Maata proves to be the unlikely hero of the shootout, forcing the Firebirds to leave town with one point instead of two. So there it is. The single biggest development is making the playoffs, but we've also caught up to Toronto for the division lead. The month ends with us and Toronto at 97 points, and Tampa Bay at 96, and then a BIG jump to the rest of the field, meaning we'll finish somewhere between 1st and 3rd. The last five games are all about seeding, but we'll look at the playoff picture more in a separate note. MONTHLY SUMMARY STANDINGS REPORT MONTH: 10-2-2 YEAR-TO-DATE: 45-25-7, 97 points DIVISION: Division: TIED for first with Toronto. Tampa sits one point back at 96, but then there’s a big drop off – Florida 85, Boston 84, Buffalo 81. Montreal 80. Clinched a Top 3 finish, so we’re definitely going to the playoffs. CONFERENCE: : 4th overall in points, but tied with Toronto. Columbus 104, Pittsburgh 102, Toronto 97, Atlanta 97, Tampa Bay 96, Carolina 89, Islanders 88, Panthers 85. ITPST, we would host Tampa Bay. TEAM LEADERS POINTS: Perron 60, Kesler 55, Fast 52, Rick Nash 46, Sbruev 46 GOALS: Kesler 24, Rick Nash 20, Hayes 20 (9 for us), Perron 19, Riley Nash 18, Fast 18, Sbruev 18 ASSISTS: Perron 41, Fast 34, Kesler 31, Sbruev 28, Riley Nash 27 PLUS-MINUS: Djoos 22, Petrovic 17, Riley Nash 14, Murphy 13, Perron 11. ON THE FARM Birmingham hasn’t clinched a playoff spot but are sitting in 2nd in their division and 4th in the Eastern conference. Nail Yakupov moved in front of Dominik Simon for the team scoring lead, 63-60, but Simon still leads the team in goals with 25. Ullmark’s rate stats have dipped a little – I’d probably blame trading Gustafsson and calling up DeMelo more than Ullmark’s innate talent level.