The hole the Allen Americans will have to dig out of to turn its season around got a little deeper last night with a 7-4 loss to the Kansas City Mavericks. It was another poor third period that spelled defeat for Allen as the Mavericks outscored the Americans 3-1. The game didn't end well but it didn't start well either. Allen gave up the first goal of the game 108 seconds after opening puck drop and were never able to catch up though they closed the gap to one goal a couple of times. Kansas City leads of 1-0, 2-0, 2-1, 4-1, 4-3, 5-3 and 5-4 before pulling away to the 7-4 win.
- Not to prolong the agony for Allen fans but here are a few stats that speak to the frustration of the game and the season for the Americans:
- Allen was once again out shot (34-23) including 14-6 in the third period. For the season the Americans have been out shot 99-73 in the third period. They are ranked #26 in shots allowed (36.63).
- Allen gave up another shorthanded goal and now have allowed twice as many shorthanded goals (6 ) as any other team in the ECHL. It doesn't say much for the power play unit when they have scored five power play goals this season but given up six shorthanded goals. It isn't a good sign when you would be better off declining all power play opportunities eight games into the season.
- Allen gave up two power play goals to Kansas City (2-6). In the last three game the penalty kill is 4-13 for a penalty kill percentage of 69.2%. For the season the penalty kill is ranked #22 (75%).
- Allen hasn't won a game all season when giving up more than three goals. The Americans have lost three straight and allowed 7, 6, and 7 goals in the losses. For the season Allen's goals allowed average is now exactly 5.00 which ranks it #26. Not going to win many games giving up five goals per game.
- I heard a lot of talk during and after the game that the team played physical and stood up for each other and I would agree with those observations. The Americans totaled 41 penalty minutes last night and have cracked the 20 PIMS per game average. There are one of four teams in the ECHL averaging 20 penalty minutes per game. Darion Skeoch received a fighting major penalty and game misconduct aggressor penalty in the last five minutes of the game which comes with an automatic suspension so he will be out today.
- Allen has now lost three straight games, six of eight this season and four of five home games. It doesn't get better the rest of the month as the Americans will on the road for six games after the game against Wichita today.
- I don't have the stats to back this up but just watching the game last night is seemed like there were way too many turnovers trying to breakout of the defensive zone and in the neutral zone, two areas of emphasis in practice this week. Faceoffs also seemed one sided in favor of the Mavericks.
- Enough doom and gloom, let's look on the positive side:
- Allen fell behind 2-0 but kept coming back to close the gap but could never get the equalizer. The Americans scored four goals, more than enough to win a game.
- Allen had the better of the game physically and I don't mean scrums and fights but finishing checks. I heard the Americans had 18 hits in the first period alone.
- Allen has won just two games in the first eight with both coming against the opponent today, Wichita.
- The attendance last night was the best of the season at 5627. It is great to see big crowds attending games again. For long time Allen fans the kiss of death going back many years seems to be games with big crowds and specialty jersey games. The large crowd curse struck again last night.
- Goal scorers for Allen were Branden Troock (2), Dawson Butt (1), Chad Costello (4) and Phil Beaulieu (2).
- Here is the Allen Americans game recap: https://allenamericans.com/media/189447/
ALLEN VS WICHITA PREVIEW
- Wichita didn't play last night so it will be the fresher team this afternoon. It may seem a while ago but Friday night in Wichita the Thunder beat Allen 6-2.
- The three keys to the game this afternoon (4:05 pm) would be get off to a better start, win on special teams and cut down on turnovers. These were all issues last night and it is hard to see Allen winning without improvement in these areas.
- I had a chance to talk to coach Martinson this morning and as you might imagine, he was not pleased the way the team played last night. Here were his comments:
"We have to many players more interested in scoring than winning."
"We made many of the same mistakes last night that we worked on in practice and video review this week."
"The shorthanded goal was critical. When your power play is -1 on the season (5 power play goals, 6 shorthanded goals allowed) it says a lot about playing defense."
"We will continue to work hard to improve the team but I will also look to improve the roster. I have a play making center that will arrive next week and I am working on other roster changes."
"Darian Skeoch will be suspended for the game today."
"We have to many players that are always on the offensive side of decisions, we need to reverse that and our leaders need to lead in being on the defensive side of decisions."
DID YOU KNOW: Allen's record is now 2-4-2-0 (.375 points percentage) which is tied for last place in the Mountain Division with Wichita. In 2018-19, when Allen ended the season with the worst record in the ECHL, its record after eight games was 3-4-0-1 (.438 points percentage).
There are glimmers of hope, like Costy's neutral zone spin to protect the puck and trickle a pass to Asuchak for the Troock goal. I saw a few head-up pass interceptions in the defensive zone, only to blow the initiative in the neutral zone - but progress is progress. Chad was leading the way physically, and the way he was pasting bigger Mavericks to the boards reminded me of the way Anthony Maiani slayed giants in the corners.
ReplyDeleteI agree that the neutral zone is the team's downfall. Still too many badly times passes and guys thinking they're faster than they are and getting stripped trying to lug the puck in.
Er... slew.
DeleteGlimmers of hope with be great, however it's more like slivers of hope. The defense is slow not very good. And the last thing any of us wants to see is Costello playing any type of a physical game. He's the highest paid player on the team to score goals and get assists, not "lead the way physically." Coach Martinson has always coached an up-tempo, offensive style of play. It's worked in the past when he's had a speedy/highly skilled defense and solid dependable goaltending, which we don't have either this season. And unfortunately with our sham of an affiliation, thanks to Jack and Mike W, we won't be getting any player help this season. It's going to be a feast or famine type of season, and it currently looks like our opponents will be doing all the feasting this season.
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