The Minnesota Wild affiliate, Rapid City Rush are in town for the weekend and the Mavericks did not get the start they could hope for. They take the lead in the first couple of minutes and lose it in 50 seconds. They are unable to retain the lead for the rest of the night and end up losing 5-2.
Welcome Back Parsons?
Without a doubt, Tyler Parsons needed to see some shots and get more ice time. Since his injury at the start of December, he had only made appearances in 2 games in Stockton. He did not get any time to get back into the swing of things in KC as he was sent up as soon as he was healthy. According to the Stockton Heat statistics, he has a combined total of 77:41 minutes in the last month and a half. He came back looking a little rusty but was still able to pull off some impressive saves. The unfortunate thing about tonight’s game is that the majority of the goals against him were weak scoring opportunities. Rapid City found the back of the net in the most obscure ways and Parsons seemed at a loss. He did however do very well in dangerous situations like breakaway and penalty kills for the most part. He beat the Rush better one on one but unfortunately there are 4 other guys on the ice to worry about. After tonight, I expect Chris Nell to start tomorrow night but Parsons should get another chance for their Tuesday night game. I’ll know for sure at game time.
Earth to Power Play
The Mavericks had 6 power play opportunities tonight and did not take advantage of any of them. In the first period, their play looked better at even strength than it did with the man advantage. I’m not sure if it was a positioning thing or a pressure thing but the Mavericks almost looked as if they were the ones with the penalty. There were at least 2 or 3 chances that Rapid City had in a short handed situation and this came from sloppy passes and too often the puck being cleared to the other end of the rink without much effort being shown by the Mavs.
Tape to Tape
If I could put a pin on the biggest issue for the Mavericks tonight, it would be without a doubt their passing. Very weak. Passes were getting broken up, turnovers were becoming second nature, bank passes were flying in every direction and if they had to make more than one pass more than likely it would be heading back to their zone. Rapid City is a very quick team and they handled the puck very well. They made the Mavericks look like rookies the way the would fly through them in the neutral zone. The Mavericks need to tighten up their passing and be more sharp to create more opportunities for themselves.
Close Calls
With less than 2 minutes to go, this game could have easily been within 1 goal. Creating a chance to maybe pull the goalie and make something happen just in time for a possible overtime. However, luck was not in the favour of the Mavs. Rush goalie, Adam Vey stretched out for a near impossible glove save that was reminiscent of some of Mike Smith’s best of the year. That puck finds its way in it would have been 5-3. With less than 2 minutes to go, Mark Cooper deflected a shot from the point in and the goal horn sounded. They celebrated and the officials wave it off immediately. He played the puck with a high stick and as a result no goal. That call goes their way and its 5-4. Could have changed the game for these guys but came too late.
Friday Funk
This is the second week in a row the Mavs have started off their weekend series with a tough loss. If history repeats itself like last weekend, hopefully the Mavs come out on top tomorrow. The score implies a lot of negatives but there is a lot of positives this team can take from it too. They didn’t lose their energy throughout the game, they were disciplined yet again when it came to roughing and fighting (that usually comes out when they get down a few goals) and they fought to the dying seconds. Even with less than 10 seconds to go and a very late power play they were still chipping at the net and looking for any chance they could get. If the Mavericks bring the same fight tomorrow, the game may take a turn in their favour.
