Great start to the series. That is exactly what was expected of the team and they delivered.

I got a little question here. Has Saku ever played on the wing? As you have probably already garnered from that, I am interested in Higgins possibly moving to the centre position. This seems to be where his home is, especially as he excels at two-way play. Higgy didn't put up any points tonight but his play was an inspiration to the team. He is learning quickly how to take faceoffs, even thinking outside the box and kicking it back one instance where he was tied up. I'm not sure if this applies in the NHL, but I remember as a kid that the centre man always had the most responsibility defensively out of the forwards. Don't get me wrong, Saku is has great two way play and is a terror in the defensive zone, but I think he could be put to better use on the wing with sergei and chris. Just an idea, I dont know if it would work for koivu, but maybe worth a try next year or in a full out practise to see how it works.

On to the game.

Price - Shaky in the first, but you can tell this kid is just getting warmed up. He is a goalie that thrives on pressure and action. With our early dominance he seemed a bit complacent, but got right into the game when it really counted.

Kovalev - Made a couple pretty plays, but I bet that he knows he has to play better for the team to succeed so there is no need to worry. He will get rolling.

Smolinski - Holy SMOKES! Gainey seems like a genius. He must have had the playoffs in mind when he traded for this guy knowing he is gonna give it his all. Nice goal and hard work in the d zone. Great effort!

Brothers K - Tough enough to compete. Nice early goals. Will be integral as the playoffs move along. I dont see these two kids backing down.

Hamrlik - Rock solid. He stood people up all over the ice and showed he is here to compete. Other teams are gonna have a hard time putting him off his game.

Gorges - What can I say, I'm a big fan. My highlight was when he had his face pressed up against the boards and worked his butt of to keep the puck away from a forecheck which lead to a breakout for the red team.

Ryder - Looks like he might explode any minute. Once those shots start getting through... Watch Out!

Breezer - I hate to bash him, but he scares me with his sloppy play along the blueline. Not a horrible outing, and I think his veteran presence was a plus for the team.

I won't bore you all and go through every player, but these are the one's I thought were noteworthy.

Let's all get ready for game 2 and hope the habs come out with their hair on fire.

GO HABS GO

-JB