Grind II: On Hayes' ice-cold opening strike in the NHL
I could see, as soon as asking, I wasn't about to be awed by any analysis from Avery Hayes.
Even if the subject matter itself was ... well, awesome:
My goodness.
There are first NHL goals, and there are FIRST NHL GOALS. And even then, that one, the icebreaker for the Penguins in their eventual 5-2 carving of the Sabres tonight here at KeyBank Center, in addition to being the first of two in Hayes' dynamite debut,
"Give him credit," Ilya Solovyov was telling me afterward. "That's just a great hockey play."
Sure was. In any context. One worth about 85 or so looks.
To rewind, Rutger McGroarty, Hayes' best bud, cleans Buffalo's Konsta Helenius on a defensive-zone draw, pulling it back to Solovyov in the corner. Pressed right away by Josh Doan, Solovyov elevates his clear attempt toward the center circle, the puck clipping off Doan's blade, too, but sent with enough steam to still get where he'd intended.
I've mentioned the big Belarussian being strong, right?
OK, well add that he's hilarious.
"I try this pass ... I don't know, maybe five times in the NHL," he'd tell me of his 36-game career thus far, "and it never works."
So, he thinks he's pretty good at it, right?
"No," came the flat reply. "But that one looked good, right?"
Sure thing, my dude.
I asked Hayes what had him storming forward as he was.
“I wasn't really thinking," came the answer one might've expected from a kid whose initial response to being surrounded by cameras and microphones was to suggest he'd "blacked out" through the entire evening. "But yeah, it was a great chip, a great exit from the D-zone."
McGroarty had this observation, too: "Avery was flying. Just flying. Before anything happened."
The landing comes at center red, with Hayes, indeed, soaring through the neutral zone, and Buffalo defenseman Jacob Bryson semi-backpedaling. That wasn't about to work in the Sabres' favor, and for both reasons. Because Hayes can motor, and because Bryson should've turned right away toward the puck once it bounced behind him. He's powerless in this stance to do anything about Hayes, apart from committing a penalty.
Lindy Ruff, Buffalo's coach since only actual buffaloes roamed Western New York, was asked by a local reporter about Bryson, and Ruff replied regarding Bryson and partner Michael Kesselring, both of whom were abysmal throughout, "It wasn't a good night for them."
And what was Hayes thinking now that he was past Bryson for a mini-breakaway?
“I wasn't thinking anything," he'd reply to this one. "I was just able to get by him."
Next, Hayes sizes up Alex Lyon in the Buffalo crease, spotting Lyon leaning to his left.
Boom!
GETTY
Avery Hayes shoots past the Sabres' Alex Lyon in the first period Thursday night in Buffalo, N.Y.
"Yeah, I saw far side," Hayes would tell me of his shooting choice. "It was there."
He remembered that much.
And of course, he'll soon remember all of it. Both goals. Several other chances. How he registered six shots and eight shot attempts, stats identical to those of Sidney Crosby. Couple hits. Takeaway.
Oh, and everyone involved in that first goal posing for the same pic:
THE ASYLUM
Grind II: On Hayes' ice-cold opening strike in the NHL
I could see, as soon as asking, I wasn't about to be awed by any analysis from Avery Hayes.
Even if the subject matter itself was ... well, awesome:
My goodness.
There are first NHL goals, and there are FIRST NHL GOALS. And even then, that one, the icebreaker for the Penguins in their eventual 5-2 carving of the Sabres tonight here at KeyBank Center, in addition to being the first of two in Hayes' dynamite debut,
"Give him credit," Ilya Solovyov was telling me afterward. "That's just a great hockey play."
Sure was. In any context. One worth about 85 or so looks.
To rewind, Rutger McGroarty, Hayes' best bud, cleans Buffalo's Konsta Helenius on a defensive-zone draw, pulling it back to Solovyov in the corner. Pressed right away by Josh Doan, Solovyov elevates his clear attempt toward the center circle, the puck clipping off Doan's blade, too, but sent with enough steam to still get where he'd intended.
I've mentioned the big Belarussian being strong, right?
OK, well add that he's hilarious.
"I try this pass ... I don't know, maybe five times in the NHL," he'd tell me of his 36-game career thus far, "and it never works."
So, he thinks he's pretty good at it, right?
"No," came the flat reply. "But that one looked good, right?"
Sure thing, my dude.
I asked Hayes what had him storming forward as he was.
“I wasn't really thinking," came the answer one might've expected from a kid whose initial response to being surrounded by cameras and microphones was to suggest he'd "blacked out" through the entire evening. "But yeah, it was a great chip, a great exit from the D-zone."
McGroarty had this observation, too: "Avery was flying. Just flying. Before anything happened."
The landing comes at center red, with Hayes, indeed, soaring through the neutral zone, and Buffalo defenseman Jacob Bryson semi-backpedaling. That wasn't about to work in the Sabres' favor, and for both reasons. Because Hayes can motor, and because Bryson should've turned right away toward the puck once it bounced behind him. He's powerless in this stance to do anything about Hayes, apart from committing a penalty.
Lindy Ruff, Buffalo's coach since only actual buffaloes roamed Western New York, was asked by a local reporter about Bryson, and Ruff replied regarding Bryson and partner Michael Kesselring, both of whom were abysmal throughout, "It wasn't a good night for them."
And what was Hayes thinking now that he was past Bryson for a mini-breakaway?
“I wasn't thinking anything," he'd reply to this one. "I was just able to get by him."
Next, Hayes sizes up Alex Lyon in the Buffalo crease, spotting Lyon leaning to his left.
Boom!
GETTY
Avery Hayes shoots past the Sabres' Alex Lyon in the first period Thursday night in Buffalo, N.Y.
"Yeah, I saw far side," Hayes would tell me of his shooting choice. "It was there."
He remembered that much.
And of course, he'll soon remember all of it. Both goals. Several other chances. How he registered six shots and eight shot attempts, stats identical to those of Sidney Crosby. Couple hits. Takeaway.
Oh, and everyone involved in that first goal posing for the same pic:
MICHELLE CRECHIOLO / PENGUINS
L-R: Rutger McGroarty, Avery Hayes, Ilya Solovyov.
Imagine that there could be more.
I've got a wholly separate Grind on that subject this morning.
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