–Daniel Alfredsson doesn’t expect the game this afternoon to be full of fireworks, “I don’t think it will be an overly physical affair.”  Paul MacLean de-emphasized the importance of the game:

It’s more important to be prepared for that day. One thing I’ve learned over the years is that once Game 83 comes, it’s a whole new season. Doesn’t matter what you did before you get there. I think it’s two different seasons. Once it starts, momentum is going to go one way or the other. It’s whoever handles the momentum swings the best usually ends up winning.

Given that there’s almost no chance the two teams will meet in the playoffs, expect a passionless no-hitter.

-I watched Binghamton’s 3-1 loss last night, with the team overwhelmed during the first period and unable to generate much pressure throughout the game.  There’s a lot of individual play and very little structure in the offensive zone.  Why Tim Conboy played on the powerplay is beyond me (Binghamton was 0-5) and Ben Blood was little used in his debut.  Robin Lehner played well in the loss (making 32 saves), with the second goal bouncing in off Henningson and the third a result of terrible coverage by Patrick Wiercioch.  Jack Downing scored the team’s only goal.  Here’s the box score and Joy Lindsay‘s game summary.

–Kurt Kleinendorst talked about the loss:

You can’t fault the effort, for sure. Again, it’s just a little bit more of the same. Guys show up, make a great effort — really no passengers. (Goalie) Robin (Lehner) didn’t have to be great, but he was good. We’re certainly not pinning this one on him. Funny bounce, puck ends up in the back of the net. The team that’s winning finds a way to win, and the team that’s losing manages to lose. That [second goal] went in off of (Dan) Henningson. But we had a chance to block the shot, which you’ve got to do to find a way to win a hockey game. If we make that block, the puck never gets into the front of the net. It was a shot from a bad angle that they threw to the net, then it bounced off Henningson up in the air over Robin‘s shoulder. As well as we played, two of their three goals were preventable if we just blocked a shot.

-Elmira won 5-2 last night to avoid elimination in the ECHL playoffs; Brian Stewart picked up the win and Corey Cowick held off the scoresheet.

This article is written by Peter Levi, be sure to follow @eyeonthesens