Justin and I were talking in the press box tonight about Kevin St. Pierre's playing time of late. His thought was that Kevin Kurk needs some playing time, and my thought is that as long as Frenchy wants to play he plays. Justin wonders what happens if Frenchy gets hurt. My thought is they are dead at that point anyway so why worry about it?
I'm also thinking that lately Frenchy has not faced that heavy of a workload. Sure, he's starting in his eighth straight game tonight, but during the first seven, he's only faced 150 shots, giving up only 13 goals, and halfway though the game tonight the Generals have only got seven. Flint just had its best scoring chance so far on a two-on-one and he stoned them and made it look actually pretty easy.
So, what do you think? I mean besides the fact that Justin has absolutely no leg to stand on.
Comments
I would agree with you about us being "dead" if Frenchy goes down (God forbid!). Not to take anything away from Kurky but he isn't the kind of goalie to take us deep into the playoffs. But, you never know. Heroes sometimes have a way of rising to the occasion that you never expected them to. Nonetheless, let's PRAY for Frenchy to stay healthy.
You both are welcome for the topic by the way.LOL
Blake, you need to think about your point a little. Yes we are dead if he goes down. That is why you need to be damn sure he is rested and strong for the playoffs. I would hate to see him get a stupid injury because of being overplayed. I think I have said enough on this.
Good win tonight. Not the physical effort everyone was looking for, but a win is a win. I was going to come on here and sing the praises of one Mike Dombkiewicz, but after that poor display of intestinal fortitude, I won't rave about how I think he is a great player for us. In a game you are ahead 4 goals and the other team has a player that has been needling you all game to show some toughness and not run away like little sissy, he should have at least tried to stand up to Stewart. That was embarrassing to see a Komet player cover up and hide like a wuss. That was painful to watch. Is this why other teams have passed on him. And I can hear the rest of you jumping to his defense on this one. I think he is the most talented D-man we have. He is also the biggest sissy we have too, he proved it tonight.
Hey Hit, then what about Stewart running away from Jorde all night? When are you going to grow up and not expect a non-fighter to take on the other team's heavyweight? How many offensive defensemen in all of hockey do you know who take on the other team's enforcer? Real smart. Get over it.
Frenchy has also always been very good at saying when he needs a night off, and right now he wants to play every night, and he should with the way he's going. Ride the hot hand -- and help keep it hot.
All I know is we got a 7 min power play to end the game with. That pretty much turned the game into a 53 min game! I wonder if it was Lance out there and he drew Stewart into a dumb 7 min call, would you still call him a wuss or a smarth player? Like you said, we were up 4-0 at the time. A fight could only turn the table to Flint's side if they would have won the fight. I was very happy with the game tonight and can't wait to see the Komets take it to Flint again Sunday!
What do you mean grow-up. What is that all about. I don't tell you to grow up when I disagree with your thoughts.
Lindsay isn't exactly a fighting type of player and he will mix it up when someone is trying to beat him down. You can honestly say that you think what Domber did is respectible out there? I guess he took his beating, he just took it and did nothing about it. Chaulk fights when he has to. Guy has fought when he has to. Luciak fought when he had to. Kevin Schmidt even fought Wingfield when that jerk pulled a cheap one on both him and our goalie a few years ago. The list goes on.
I bet you will find at least 10 other guys on this blog tonight who think what Domber did out there was embarrassing. Or, everyone will pull the old pile on trick again. Either way, it will be fun to watch.
Also I was telling my wife tonight at the game that I feel Frenchy is our weakest link going into the playoffs. Don't get me wrong, I love that he is the weakest link since he is such a great goalie. I have always loved Frenchy, but I have always thought he makes the best saves and lets in some of the softest goals. When he's on point, he is the best in the game. When he's not, well...
I feel the power play is the best it has been all year. Plus we have killed off so many stupid calls. How many shorties have we scored in the past few weeks? We have been throwing more and more hits every game and I love hearing that Coach P was happy for the fights and the players starting to stand up!!! It must be getting cold down "South!"
Can't wait for the playoffs!!!!!!!
OK-guys-nobody would ever want Pierre to get hurt and god forbid he does but if he does than we should at least have some faith in our backup goalie and not even say were dead-Kurk has come through for us before-and I believe he could do it again-he needs to get some ice time for that to happen though and not just get thrown in like Shields last year when Frenchie went down.
Blake, in a situation like that, a 4-0 lead, the game over, at home against a guy you already backed down against -- if a guy challenges you, YOU FIGHT HIM. You lose a lot more in respect by covering up than you do by fighting and losing.
You make it sound like Stewart is a monster. He's listed at 5' 11" 195. So he fights a lot. Maybe you fight and lose. It doesn't mean you don't go with him.
Big deal, a 7 minute powerplay. The game was already decided. I guarantee you Flint and Stewart now know they OWN Dombkewicz and will use that to their advantage.
So many people that have never played anything more serious than river hockey just don't seem to understand this.
Since ouw defense doesn't protect our goalie (see last 2 years playoffs vs. Muskegon) it's a pretty safe bet a team like Danbury will run St. Pierre earlier rather than later.
Kurk had BETTER be ready.
Good call Skate. You have some sense. You are right on target, once again. Couldn't have said it better myself. That run and hide thing was awful. He needs to shave off that bush and stop pretending to be a tough guy, and start looking more like the pretty boy he is.
I think the Komets are no different than just about any other team in this league. How many teams really have a # 2 goalie that can be a #1 for any length of time? I think Frenchy could use a night off here or there if for no other reason than to keep Kurk fresh just in case. If the Komets win tommorow, Sunday might be a good chance to get Kurk in there.
Ok I don't care if you are a non-fighter, fighter, offensive defensman, waterboy, Komets beat writer whatever you wouldn't let somebody come after you and beat on you. Blake if Justin came after you would you turtle and let him beat on you?? No you would fight back right??? Letting someone beat you is an injury waiting to happen. I won't call him a sissy yet like hit (sorry hit) too soon to go there. I will say though Dom does have a nice looking Girlfriend/Wife but we won't get into that.
Is Dombkewicz a vegetarian, too?
I think what he did was genious! Really what did he have to gain by fighting at that time? The score was out of hand, it wasn't like he was protecting someone else (for example had someone run over Frenchy I am sure he would have stepped in)
The Komets had all the momentum going. Had he fought he could have injured himself in a meaningless situation and the way he is playing the Komets don't want that. Meanwhile he got the Komets a powerplay for the duration of the game and they were able to protect another shutout. Lets say he fights, loses the fight, Flint gets some momentum off of it, and scores a couple of late goals. Would that have been worthwhile?
I salute Mr. Dombkiewicz for a smart, hockey decision. He knew the time, the place and the game situation. There was nothing to be gained.
Tony so when is the right time to fight somebody? With the score being 4-0 it was not like they were going to go on a tear put 5 past Frency. If you feel that way then why didn't you complain about Lindsay fighting. Hey when you are up by 4 goals and you are a newcomer to the Fort and you get challenged it is the perfect time to establish that no only are you a good defensemen, but you can throw down. Domber had a great chance last night to really become a fan favorite from top to bottom, now a lot of fans will question his toughness or maybe that is why he has been with six different teams in the UHL.
David, I wasn't exactly complaining. If he had fought I would not have come on here saying he was wrong for doing it.
Maybe he doesn't want to become a fan favorite for fighting? Guy has been a fan favorite for years and he doesn't drop the gloves on a regular basis. People like him because he is a solid defenceman who chips in to the offence.
The "right" time to fight? Well, if someone takes a cheap shot at a teamate or yourself, if you are on the downside of a 4-0 score and you want to fire your team up, and any other number of reasons. I can tell you this from experience, if you think these guys in the middle of the heat of battle think to themselves "If I fight this clown, everyone in the crowd will love me" you are mistaken.
I love fighting in hockey. I think people who want to take it out of the game have no clue what would happen. People would end up using sticks as spears. Dombkiewicz got his team a 7 minute powerplay that helped them close the game and save another shutout for Frenchy. I think if you asked his teamates (who he is much more concerned about pleasing than the fans) they would tell you that his actions helped the team win last night.
Let me add one other thing, how do we know he doesn't have an injury to his hand/shoulder etc that he was protecting? The Maple Leafs lost their second leading scorer for the rest of the year Jason Allison when he broke a bone in his hand fighting. It turns out he already had an injury to that hand before the fight and it was made worse. At least in that situation, he fought in a close game protecting a teamate who he felt was laid out from behind. Dombkiewicz has been a positive contributor to the team since he got here. They need him healthy and functioning.
I understand your points but lets just agree to disagree. We will see what happens on Sunday with the return match
The commissioner didn't say it I did. Deal with it. Do you know how childish it sounds when the Komets win 4-0, absolutely control the entire game, and the first thing you read on here was about how some guy who got jumped from behind miles behind the play didn't win a fight? It doesn't seem to matter if the guy is a fighter or not, just that he wasn't barbaric enough. Heaven forbid!
If you want the days of line brawls and stuff to come back, go watch Ultimate Fighting or pro wrestling or something like that. That's not hockey. Fighting is a part of hockey, maybe the most exciting part, but get some perspective! Not everybody is a fighter, hockey isn't all about fighting, and there are circumstances to everything.
Why don't one of you guys ask Jorde as he comes out of the lockerroom on Sunday about asking guys to go. I do, and then everybody says they don't see it. So who's lying, him or me? We have barely seen him get touched in a fight, so you can't say he's afraid to go with anybody.
And by the way, didn't anybody notice that Dombkiewicz actually did throw some punches? He was just so tied up he couldn't get around to go head on at Stewart. At that point he either turtles or takes a beating. Which would you do?
Sometimes I wonder if anyone has respect for the guys who actually have to stand there and go at it. That takes courage, even in a situation like Dombkiewicz found himself in last night. That deserves respect, the same way I respect the scoop guys for what you do. If one of you went out there and fell on your butt, I wouldn't make fun of you. I'd give you credit for getting back up and continuing to do your job. After getting jumped from behind and tied up, Dombkiewicz had nothing to gain in that instance since he couldn't get around to fight.
Let's see what happens Sunday.
Don't make me angry! You wouldn't like me when I'm angry!
Now that guy is actually pretty tough.
Tony E wrote: "I can tell you this from experience, if you think these guys in the middle of the heat of battle think to themselves "If I fight this clown, everyone in the crowd will love me" you are mistaken."
WELL, I WOULDN'T ASK STEVE PARSONS OR FLETCHER ABOUT THAT. OR WORLTON, OR SEAN GAGNON OR KIRK THOMLINSON, AND ON AND ON.
Blake wrote: "Why don't one of you guys ask Jorde as he comes out of the lockerroom on Sunday about asking guys to go."
I DON'T DOUBT THAT JORDE WILL THROW THEM ON OCCASION BUT IT'S BEEN MY EXPERIENCE THAT YOU IF REALLY WANT TO FIGHT A CERTAIN GUY, THERE ARE WAYS TO ACCOMPLISH IT WITHOUT "ASKING HIM TO GO."
If Jorde is in the mood to throw them tomorrow, I have just two words for him:
CHAD WILCOX
Skate you are talking about two different breeds.
Your list is a list of goons on skates. They have their place and their job on the ice and they did it well. At times the only reason they were sent onto the ice was to fight. They did it for their team. Did they enjoy the fans cheering them? Probably.
But I have never heard of, or played for a coach that said "you know what, lets send bruno on the ice to fight so the fans have something to cheer about" Players do not and should not make decisions on the ice based on whether they will please the fans or not.
Dombkiewicz was not brought here to fight. He was brought here to be on the ice and play defence. That is exactly what he did. He was available to be on the ice and protect the shutout.
I did some checking. Here are the stats. What made ANYONE think he was a fighter?
http://www.hockeydb.com/ihdb/stats/pdisplay.php3?pid=25933
i think dombo did the right thing. stewart was after him for an earlier hit in another game. dobo threw a few punches but stewart had an advantage so he turtled and knew he had a later opportunity for a payback. now if he doesnt take revenge on sunday, then we all can call him sissy and ring him up as another typical komet. new player comming in alert, 5 ft 10 and 155 lbs? how can he be strong enough to skate with all that equipment on him????? blake.. congrats on the colin lister award! as a ball coach for over 40yrs i think you deserved it . now dont turtle on us...........
Thank you Chuckitt, the award means a tremendous amount to me because it is named after a great man. Very humbling.
I'm sorry, Hit, I shouldn't have said grow up. That was very childish of well,... me. I just get so tired of talking about fighting all the time here. It's such a small part of the game but it seems to dominate all the discussions. That fight was so insignificant in the whole picture of last night's game, and it seems to me almost all fights are that way unless you are trying for a quick momentum change. Fletch was the absolute best at that.
Tony, with the exception of Worlton, every one of those guys spent considerable time in the IHL, AHL and NHL.
You said no player thought about that and I gave you a list of guys that certainly did.