The Cleveland Monsters had rolled through the AHL playoffs winning two five-game series in a total of seven games. With the play of goaltender Jet Greaves and scoring from all over the lineup, the Monsters had their sights set on the Eastern Conference Finals and the Hershey Bears.
The two teams met in Game 1 on Thursday night at Giant Center. Despite a valiant effort to score twice in the final 1:20 of regulation, the Monsters ultimately fell 5-4 in overtime. Mike Vecchione, who scored the game-winning goal in Game 7 of the Calder Cup Finals last season, scored on an odd-man rush to put the Bears up 1-0.
Anyone who watched Game 1 saw why the Hershey Bears are for real and why the Cleveland Monsters are facing their stiffest test yet. The Bears are favored in this series for a reason.
Bears Defense/Goaltending
The Monsters have not seen a better blue line and goalie in these playoffs. Under coach Todd Nelson, they are as structured as you will find. They also feature the regular season’s best goalie in Hunter Shepard.
For two periods, the Bears held the Monsters to just eight total shots on goal. Time and space was very hard to find. Although the Monsters were opportunistic scoring twice in the second period, the Bears were the better team and responded with two goals of their own to take a 3-2 lead into the second intermission.
While the Monsters did improve in the third period from a shots perspective, the Bears made it 4-2 and seemed primed to coast to a Game 1 win. As the Monsters have demonstrated all playoffs long, they found a way to claw back and were able to force overtime against the league’s best defensive team. This leads directly into our next point as to why this is the stiffest test the Monsters have faced.
Bears Are Much More Experienced
Many teams who give up a late 4-2 lead in the fashion they did would panic and lose the game. Not these Hershey Bears. After some back and forth in overtime, they were able to generate a 3-on-1 rush in which Vecchione was able to score the winner.
The Bears have experience up and down their roster. Many of them played out the string last season when they won the Calder Cup. They know how to handle the pressure of these situations. While the Monsters have talent, they can’t match the experience. That will be put to the test in Game 2. How will the Monsters respond to the emotion of tying the game and then eventually losing in the manner they did?
The Bears used the overtime intermission as a reset to get back to what makes them successful. They didn’t allow the Monsters much in the extra session. That is the sign of a championship-level team. If the Monsters are to win this series, they’re going to have to overcome the sizeable gap in overall experience in pressure-packed situations.
Team Speed
The other thing the Monsters have not seen yet in an opponent in these playoffs is the team speed the Bears have. An example of this is seen on the 1-0 goal from Game 1. Ethan Frank used his speed to be able to accept a pass down the wing. He had a clean look at Greaves and made no mistake.
In addition, the Bears were able to generate seven power-play opportunities against the Monsters which ultimately helped decide the outcome of the game. The Bears scored on two of the seven chances. Most of these chances came as a result of the Bears’ players moving their feet forcing the Monsters into mistakes.
In order for Trent Vogelhuber and the Monsters to come back in Game 2, they must find a way to contain the speed the Bears have. It’s not only in the skating, it’s in the decision-making of the Bears in the plays they make. There were long stretches of the game in which the Bears dominated possession and made quick decisions. It forced the Monsters to react to them rather than the Monsters making the Bears play their game.
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If Game 1 showed us anything, it’s that the Bears are favored in this series for a reason. But it also showed don’t ever count the Monsters out. There is a chance we’ll see a lineup change or two depending on health. Captain Brendan Gaunce is close to ready to return. We’ll see if any of the injured defensemen can come back also.
Should the Monsters win Game 2, they get the next three of the series at Rocket Mortgage Fieldhouse since this is a 2-3-2 format. Puck drop in Game 2 goes Saturday night at Giant Center.
The Monsters are facing their stiffest test of the Calder Cup Playoffs. If we’ve learned anything about them from these playoffs, expect a big response in Game 2 in an effort to send the series back to Cleveland 1-1.
