Igor Orlov walks through the door marked 100

There is an old idea, older than any scoreboard, that a round number is a door. Most players pass through one without noticing. A few pass through with the puck still on their stick, and something follows them out. On Saturday, May 30, Igor Orlov came to more than one door in a single game, and he did not knock softly at any of them.

The first door was the plain wooden one. He reached 100 games this title, and the hundredth game was this one, against tOSU Buckeyes.

The second door was heavier. He went past 150 goals this title in the same game.

The third door was the one players forget is there. He went past 100 assists this title too, the quiet ledger of the goals he handed to others.

Every tale has a hinge, and this one turns on two numbers that refuse to agree. The club threw 35 hits, unusually high, and out-hit tOSU Buckeyes for the 2nd game in a row. It completed 66.7% of its passes, unusually low. Iron in the shoulders, rust in the passing, and still 8 goals on the board. Four of them carried one man's name.

Igor Orlov took 10 shots. He scored 4 goals, against a 6s average of 1.7. He finished with 6 points, against a 6s average of 2.7. In the old stories, the hundredth of anything is an omen, and omens are argued over. This one is not hard to read. It means plenty.

He did not carry the lantern alone. Joey Flopfish set up 4 goals and had 6 points of his own. Beev scored twice from the blue line. Erb threw 7 hits, well above his usual. The scoring had more than one author, even if one name is written larger on the page.

And at the far end stood a figure who is not a teammate at all. Matteo Lehmann, the AI goalie, faced 18 shots, unusually high. He stopped 17 of them, a 94.4% save percentage, and that was a steal. A blowout needs someone to keep the gate shut while the doors are being opened elsewhere, and on this occasion the gatekeeper was a machine.

So remember the game for its round numbers, and remember it for the man who reached them all in one game. A door marked 100 is only wood and paint until someone walks through it with 4 goals in his pocket. After that it is a story, and the story belongs to him. The next door has no number on it yet. The wise thing is to leave it unlocked.