SpeakoftheDevil(s) Posted May 2, 2003 Share Posted May 2, 2003 this move cannot be going over well with the tampa fans...... although all I can see why the move is valid. But I tend to believe you go down with the ship that brought you and that is the SS Khabibulin. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Triumph Posted May 2, 2003 Share Posted May 2, 2003 This is a very stupid move. Risk alienating one of the top goaltenders in hockey to try to win a series down 3-1? Even if it works tonight, it's not worth taking that risk. We've seen this before, last year with Weekes, in 97 when Tremblay put in Theodore for Game 4 instead of Thibault. Tortorella may be getting success with Tampa, but I question a lot of his coaching moves over this series. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
devilsrule33 Posted May 2, 2003 Share Posted May 2, 2003 Sports Network 5/2/2003 (Sports Network) - The New Jersey Devils, ahead three games to one, try to advance to the Eastern Conference finals tonight when they host the Tampa Bay Lightning in Game 5 of their semifinal set at the Meadowlands. According to reports, the Tampa Bay Lightning have decided to start John Grahame in net as opposed to regular starter Nikolai Khabibulin. With a victory, the Devils can advance past the second round for the third time in four years. In 2000 and '01 they made it all the way to the Stanley Cup Finals, winning the first year. The Devils have held a 3-1 advantage in a playoff set seven previous times and gone on to win all of them -- five times in Game 5. "Hopefully with our experience, we'll know what's at stake and come out and get the job done," Devils captain Scott Stevens said. "We don't want them to climb back in." New Jersey swept the first two games on home ice and, after dropping Game 3 in Tampa, put a firm grasp on the series with Wednesday's 3-1 triumph in the fourth contest. Stevens, Scott Gomez and Patrik Elias provided the New Jersey goals, while Martin Brodeur turned aside 25 shots. Stevens delivered a performance worthy of a true captain that has been through his share of Stanley Cup playoff wars. The future Hall of Famer, whose status was in doubt after getting hit in the head by an errant shot in the previous game, was nothing short of a horse in the win. Stevens registered a team-high 27:35 of ice time, got involved physically right off the bat and topped off the evening with an insurance goal in the third period. "That guy's sick," said Gomez. "That guy is an animal. Nothing hurts that guy. It just shows what a leader he is." Stevens was hit by a Pavel Kubina shot early in Game 3, went down to the ice in a heap and did not return. He needed 20 stitches to close a gash on his left ear and had precautionary X-rays taken to check for skull damage. While most believed throughout Wednesday that Stevens would suit up -- team officials included -- he said he did not make a final decision until the pre-game warm up. Stevens and the Devils continued to suffocate the Lightning defensively. They have especially minimized the effect of Tampa's top two offensive weapons, Martin St. Louis and Vincent Lecavalier, who carried the team back from an 0-2 hole versus Washington in the first round. St. Louis was limited to one shot Wednesday, while Lecavalier managed a pair. "They were tough to play against [in Game 4]," said St. Louis, "They don't give you much, so when you do get a chance, you better make the most of it. That's a good team, a very good team. When they get the puck, they don't give it back. Puck possession is probably the best defense you can play." St. Louis has two goals in this series, while Lecavalier, who has faced sustained harassment by Stevens and Selke finalist John Madden, has a mere one assist. The Lightning have some recent history to draw from as they try to come back from a 3-1 series deficit. Two teams -- the Minnesota Wild and Vancouver Canucks -- accomplished the feat in the first round. "We can't worry about winning three games or thinking about trying to get to a Game 7," Tampa Bay center Brad Richards said. "We have to worry about winning one game and win one game in their building and go from there." If the Lightning can pull out a win tonight, Game 6 would be played Sunday afternoon at the St. Pete Times Forum in Tampa. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
brylin18 Posted May 2, 2003 Share Posted May 2, 2003 i agree. khabibulin could ask for a trade over something as stupid as this. he's your franchise goaltender, you've got to go wtih him all the way. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Zamode Posted May 2, 2003 Share Posted May 2, 2003 Grahame is in, I never would have thought. Let's hope this works to the Devils advantage. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LizDevil30 Posted May 3, 2003 Share Posted May 3, 2003 Right now Tortarella looks like a genius. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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