Down With Pants! spent a solid night on the couch watching first the Montreal Canadiens knock off the Boston Bruins 2-0 to win their series in the first round of the Stanley Cup Playoffs, then watching one of the most incredible games with Calgary beating Vancouver 3-2 in overtime to take game seven of their series. Martin Gelinas scored the game winner less than two minutes into overtime. Vancouver tied the game at 2-2 when Matt Cooke scored off a rebound of a shot by Markus Naslund with only 5.7 seconds left in the 3rd period.
I know it's a cliche, but neither team deserved to lose this game as everybody played incredible. Both goalies Mikka Kiprusoff and Alex Auld (a 23 year-old, 3rd string goalie, who was playing because Dan Cloutier was hurt and Johan Hedberg was ineffective earlier in the series) did everything they could possibly do to win the game. Auld made two great saves before Gelinas finally put it home to end the game.
The Flames now move on to play #1 seeded Detroit. I'll be rooting for them and any other Canadian teams the rest of the way now that my Canucks are out. The Flame's Jarome Iginla (pictured) has become my favorite hockey player because of his play against the Canucks. He scored two goals tonight including one of the best goals I have ever seen where he was almost laying flat on his stomach. If you like hockey and haven't seen him play yet make sure you watch him against Detroit this week.
Of course the game ended with my favorite tradition in sports, the post-series handshake line. I love seeing these guys who just beat the crap out of each other for seven games give each other handshakes, high fives, hugs and congratulations instead of just sulking off to the locker room never to be seen again. It's just a little bit of sportsmanship that you rarely see in professional sports anymore.
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