Whaddaya like?

“I liked the fact we didn’t quit,” Brent Thompson said. “I thought the third period was our best period.” He’d like a more-structured defensive zone, more of an edge back there.

He had high praise for John Persson, who’s played a very effective game. “He continues to get better every shift, every game,” Thompson said. “He seems to be catching up to the speed of the American League. … He’s got something there.”

Halmo* went to the net to put in a rebound. The Penguins knocked the puck out from under Reiter*, and MacIntyre put it in; flash back to last night in Providence, maybe, but this time the referee didn’t blow it dead. Got another on the power play; scored a third in the third, which was enough, though Bridgeport had chances.

One more with these guys, and then three to five with the archrival for the right to move on.

……

For the right to move on and face… looking way too far ahead: Bridgeport can’t play Norfolk in the second round, nor can it play whoever gets the seventh seed. The Whale can’t face St. John’s or the eighth. Specifically, Bridgeport can play St. John’s (if the seeds hold), Wilkes-Barre/Scranton or Hershey (if one and only one of the other division winners loses) or the No. 8 (if both the 1 and 2 are knocked off). Combinations/permutations/what have you. Should Bridgeport win, I’ve got to figure that either Norfolk or St. John’s will be upset, and Bridgeport would get the WBS/Hershey winner, because it’s stunning enough that Bridgeport isn’t facing a Pennsylvania team in the first round.

Thompson said there could be some in-and-out in the lineup tomorrow.

The Whale… ah, that only half matters now. But it matters big-time for Syracuse, which maintains control of its own fate: Beat Albany tomorrow, and the Crunch are in. Lose, though, and with those 28 regulation/OT wins, they’re hoping for help. Manchester beat Hershey in the afternoon. Looks to me as if the Monarchs are at least in with a win of any stripe tomorrow (at least, as long as I’m right that they beat Portland in the season series).

The Whale has played without Andre Deveaux and Brendan Bell the past couple of nights and without Wade Redden tonight.

Norfolk needed overtime but still won its 27th in a row. The regulation-wins streak ends, but at least it’s still an actual-hockey victory, 21 of those in a row.

I look forward to the end of the night tomorrow, when I can look at the Rumored Conference standings and see what’s what over there. Man.

Greenwich’s Cam Atkinson dressed for the Falcons’ finale, capping a fine rookie season.

The Canadian women’s national team was apparently playing rope-a-dope; after losing to the U.S. 9-2 last week, it beat the U.S. in overtime tonight in the gold-medal game.

And RIP, Hall of Famer Emile “Butch” Bouchard.

*-The gamer’s on those guys, so give a look there for quotes on/from them.

Michael Fornabaio