Shut out (different) loss (same): Springfield postgame

Fran Sypek, former Falcons beat writer for the Republican, understood where I was sitting during this one. He saw some tough years, too, and understands the fun of trying to come up with something different each night. (Mine today, though planned during the week, was to talk to Jaime Sifers this morning. I figured this would be the win, because of that.)

So I went downstairs afterward and basically asked Brent Thompson how this night was different from the other nights.

“I think if you’re looking at the big picture, I don’t think our execution as a team was very good,” he said. “As far as the intensity and the effort level, those were there. But we beat ourselves. Sure, we spot them a two-goal lead. Catch-up against a good team, we’re behind the 8-ball.”

Mike Hoeffel somehow wrapped it around, maybe banked it off Kevin Poulin and in. The Falcons moved it around, got Sean Collins open, and it was 2-0 in more or less a blink in the first.

They get a third goal late in the second, and that’s a killer, but they weren’t exactly making Anton Forsberg’s night difficult.

“I don’t think we generated enough offense, winning hard-area battles,” Thompson said. That leads to chances for the opposition and no secondary chances for Bridgeport.

“Look at the Islanders, at teams that generate 30-plus shots,” he said. “They’re getting secondary chances, going to the hard areas.”

Tomorrow comes in a team that hasn’t given up much at all.

…….

Thompson wasn’t positive what was going to happen for tomorrow’s game as far as the defense, if they’d make a move, if not. Jesse Graham and Kevin Czuczman completed their fifth game tonight and were all over the box score in the third period, if not exactly for the reasons they’d like to be. (Of course, South Carolina appears to have given up losing.)

Congratulations to Rick DiPietro and family on the addition.

Prescout. The Penguins haven’t lost in regulation in nine.

Tim Kennedy and Chris Conner set a Hershey record tonight, scoring five seconds apart.

Sabres defenseman Mark Pysyk, just sent back to the Amerks, collapsed this morning in Rochester but was released from the hospital this afternoon.

Story from the Springfield Republican on Leonard Nimoy and his photography finding an audience in a local town.

Saw this while waiting to catch up with Sifers this morning: recreating Monticello. Seriously.

And RIP, Anthony Mason.

Michael Fornabaio