No, we didn’t write this post only because we have a new Darroll Powe t-shirt in the BSH Store, but it certainly is a fun little coincidence, huh? Check it out.
It’s not often that Darroll Powe is one of the players that speak to the media after a game, but on Tuesday night in Montreal, Powe was summoned thanks to an atypically busy game for him.
In recent games he’s been getting his name into our conscience by experiencing the sudden boost one’s offensive game gets as a result of playing alongside Claude Giroux. On Tuesday, though, he was back to being the Powe we’re used to — the hard-hitting, always-moving, aggressive-forechecking Powe.
On one of those hard checks, he wound up catching Montreal’s Josh Gorges a bit off guard.
POWE, right in the kisser. As you can see in the slow-as-Derian-Hatcher replay there, it’s obvious that Powe’s hit was a completely legal shoulder-to-shoulder check. His elbow does indeed come up, but it can’t be more clear in that video — the hit has already been delivered when the elbow begins to rise. It’s not an elbowing penalty.
Aw, shucks. Of course they called it. The Flyers killed it though. No worries. And Powe’s night wasn’t over yet, anyway.
He didn’t let the over-zealous officials break his game. Just a few minutes into the third period, he delivered another big hit, this time on Montreal’s Jeff Halpern.
This one certainly looked a lot more scary thanks to the awkward way Halpern’s head collided with the glass, but thankfully he was fine after the play. Seemed like his helmet might have been a bit loose, too, since it fell off pretty easily. That could have been bad as he fell backward to the ice, but luckily it turned out alright.
At the same time, it certainly wasn’t a play worthy of a penalty, as Darren Eliot points out on the Versus broadcast, and thankfully the officials got it right this time. Shoulder to the back, unfortunate whiplash effect. No contact with the head. No penalty called. But of course, that won’t stop the Montreal hype machine from calling for Powe’s head, like I’ve read several times already this morning. Find it for yourself — I won’t be linking to that garbage.
But I mean, I guess they do have a point. He plays for the Flyers! From Philadelphie! Who ruined our BEAUTIFUL SPORT! Give it a rest, Montreal. Your rioting in the streets after a second round win gives OUR game much worse a reputation than anything the Flyers did in the 1970s. Of, if not that, there’s always this. (Yeah, I said it.)
Still, you knew the Habs wouldn’t be happy with the play. At the same time, did they really have somebody ballsy enough to challenge Powe on it? As it turned out, Maxim Lapierre would step up and make Powe answer for the two big hits he laid on the bleu, blanc et rouge, and boy, did No. 36 ever answer.
You’ve gotta give credit to Lapierre for sticking up for his teammates there, but uh, given the result, he might not be trying that again anytime soon. It’s not like Powe’s much of a heavyweight fighter, either. I mean, the dude went to Princeton. He probably gave Lapierre a physics lesson as he beat him into the ice. Something about terminal velocity or something.
So, yeah. Powe had a pretty interesting night in Montreal on Tuesday. Really, his two vicious, legal hits and the subsequent backing-up of those hits with his fists were probably the highlight of the game from our side. He might have the finishing ability of a block of stone, but as long as he plays hard-nosed, fast-paced, aggressive hockey like this, he’s well worth every penny.
