Moose and Marlies preview

TORONTO, Ont – If there was one team the Manitoba Moose would have liked to avoid in the first round series it would have been the Toronto Marlies. While on paper the Moose have had a far better season than its North East counterparts, there is one statistic that puts a chink in the Western conference winners armor, six losses out of eight to the Marlies. One saving grace for the Moose is outstanding net minder Cory Schneider. The AHL Goalie of the Year goes into this series on the back of his league-leading goals against average of just 2.04 and a save percentage of .928%. Compare that to Marlies hot-and-cold netminder Justin Pogge simmering with a GA of 2.70 and a save percentage of .895 the Moose have the upper hand. However you do not win games by not scoring and scoring is what the Marlies like to do. The Marlies will look to the experience of Jiri Tlusty despite his young age. The speedster has a wealth of experience from his time in the NHL and if like last season’s playoff run he manages to light the lamp the Marlies will be a force. The surprise package of the year is 26-year old Tim Stapleton. Following two seasons in Finland, Stapleton returned to Canada and has since gone onto have a career-best season with the Marlies registering 79 points and leading the Marlies in goals (28) and assists (51). Look for Stapleton to shine in the high-tempo playoff style of hockey. A setback for the Marlies could be prolific goal scorer Jason Krog, who led the Moose with 30 goals. Krog’s play alongside left winger Jason Jaffray gives the Marlies a number of challenges. Krog was also on the team, the Chicago Wolves, that ended the Marlies pursuit of the Calder Cup last year during a run which saw Krog pick up the AHL Playoff MVP award. This will be tough one to call, if you go by the Moose regular season they seem to have this in the bag but if you look at the head-to-head games then it’s in the Marlies favor. Look for this to go the full seven games with the Moose just edging it out over Toronto. Contact the author at Kevin.oconnor@prohockeynews.com
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