Calder Cup Final Preview

GM Andrew Payeur met with the media today to discuss his AHL affiliate, the Springfield Falcons matchup against the Quad City Mallards in the Calder Cup final. When asked how his team has made it this far he responded "I have no idea to be completely honest with you. We have the ghost of Tom Kostopolous on our top line, I was pretty sure he retired in 2013". The team's quest to the finals has not been pretty, goalie Anders Lindback has been outstanding, stopping more shots than any other goalie so far throughout these playoffs while sporting a .939 save percentage.

The Falcons have been thoroughly outshot and outplayed by their opponents through 3 playoff rounds leaving them with a dismal -126 shot differential. The good news for the Falcons is that the Mallards have struggled in this regard as well, they have a -75 shot differential heading into the final. To truly grasp how bad the Falcons have been, consider that the team has outshot their opponents only 3 times through 18 games. Quad City has fared a little better in this metric, having outshot their opponent on 5 occasions through 15 games. 

The Mallards come into the finals with a top line featuring playoff scoring leader Phil Di Giuseppe and strong goaltending from Jeremy Smith. Meanwhile the Falcons will seek a head-to head matchup of that top line with their own, featuring Austin Watson, Tim Schaller and the afformentioned ghost of Tom Kostopolous. The Falcons will once again have to lean on Lindback to get them through this series.

Payeur answered one reporter's question about the move of the team's AHL affiliate to Greenville next season where they will be renamed the Road Warriors. Payeur responded "I'll be honest, I was pretty disapointed when I found out it wasn't the same Springfield as the one from the Simpsons. Plus a Road Warrior is way cooler than Falcon." When asked to clarify what exactly is a "Road Warrior", Payeur replied "No clue. I have Mad Max 2 DVRed at home, I'll let you know once I watch it."