...and the kitchen sink

Random thoughts on a spring-like Monday:

- The Tampa papers are awash with stories on the Canes diving to get penalties on Saturday night. What is it about Florida and sore losers? The bottom line from the rafters: Did the Cane's get the benefit of the doubt on a few calls? Sure. But when you are dominating the game the way the Canes were in the 2nd and 3rd periods, you are going to get the benefit of some calls. The Lightning were out-skated, out-hit and out-worked for the majority of the game. I noticed the difference in penalty calls, and was looking for a few make-up calls in the 3rd to even things out. But the fact of the matter is, the 'Ning did nothing in the 3rd to warrant a call. They basically rolled over like a team playing out the string. Big surprise. And now they want to whine about it. Whatever. When they are on their game, no one gets the benefit of calls more than St Louis and Levcavalier. They just didn't do anything on Saturday to deserve it.

- I've been really impressed with the contributions of the newcomers over the last few weeks. Has there been a better waiver wire claim in recent history than Sergei Samsonov? The River Rats have been amazing. Corvo, Ruutu and Eaves all got on the score sheet Saturday night. The energy and edge have been fun to watch. Let's hope they can all sustain it on the road.

= I'm bummed that I was unable to buy playoff tickets this year, but since I don't have a job at the moment, I was unable to make the commitment. Thankfully my regular season ticket plan was paid for before I became a "man of leisure". Unfortunately, my bank account is quickly approaching "unemployed". Here's hoping I'll be able to buy some playoff tickets a la carte when the time comes.

- There was a little speculation on Lord Stanley's Blog today regarding Ray Whitney's injury and status. Apparently a rumor was going around that Raymond had been to see a specialist regarding a possible infection in his leg. Coach Laviolette discarded these rumors, but would only say that Whitney was day-to-day (then again, aren't we all?).

- If Whitney is unavailable in Atlanta on Wednesday, the lineup is likely to remain as it was on Saturday night. I liked the pairing of Ruutu with Staal and Cole, and Patrick Eaves seems to be getting more and more comfortable with every game, playing on a line with Samsonov and Cullen. I was a little surprised with the defensive pairing of Corvo and Kaberle. Seemed a bit odd, to me at least, to pair up your two most offensive defensemen, outside of the power play. Especially when you are working with the minimum six man rotation. But once again Laviolette proves himself smarter than me. Go figure.

- Eric Staal has continued to improve his all around game. He's really stepped up in all phases since Brind A'Mour went down. Saturday he was rewarded with a three point night (1 goal, two assists). It was nice to see, but even when he has not shown up on the scoresheet, his effort has been there consistently of late and it really has seemed to rub off on his teammates. This guy is going to be wearing the "C" someday for this team, and it's nice to see him growing into the role.

- Since his arrival, Sergei Samsonov is tied with Eric Staal for total points on the team with 21. He matched Staal's three point effort on Saturday against the Lightning, with 2 goals and an assist of his own.

-m