Your basing everything on won/loss record. You have to look beyond that. Stupid penalties, bad line changes, and people constantly being out of position on the ice are not a result of lack of talent, but rather a result of not fully understanding when, where, and how to use their talent. That is on the coach. The fact that a talented team can win playoff games does not make for a great coach.
Wins and losses are a important thing. BB was our coach for years and he has been considered a great coach by so many people and what did it get his teams? So many disappointments which had included having 4 years in a row blowing 3-2 series leads. With RC who many considered so terrible in his return to Anaheim we won the division,won a game 7 and reached the western conference finals. RC coached teams might not look so great but they don't do so bad like you would expect from a coach that is so horrible like people have been saying. RC isn't as bad a coach as made out to be but he also isn't a great coach either.
I’ve seen teams over the years with far worse injuries that have made the playoffs and done very well. 5 or so years back the Pens played the second half of the season without Crosby or Malkin and still managed to win games and make the playoffs. That’s worse than missing Getz and Kesler for 2-3 months each.
And .500 isn’t a respectable record in this day. We are near the bottom of the conference - sure we have been hit hard by injuries but we are still giving up 40 shots a night with one of the best Ds (on paper) in the league, that’s a huge issue. As soon as Getz went out RC should have simplified things and played a trap game. It’s boring as hell but it’s the only way a team this beat up up front can get results.
How many teams have had so many man games lost with such important players like we have had so far? Penguins when they have had Malkin hurt have had Crosby playing or when Crosby hurt have Malkin playing so they had a elite of elite center playing then.
We have a 10 - 10 - 4 record considering all the injuries we have had which includes to so many key players I would call that a respectable record even if it is in the lower half of the conference. Our D has had Fowler,Lindholm,Vatanen all missing a good amount of games so our good D on paper hasn't been iced at the same time much.
Well, I can explain our respectable record with two words: John Gibson.
Watching the Ducks play right now is downright painful. We look as close to a drunk team in the beer leagues as possible for an NHL team. Missing our top two centers is not the reason that our goalies are facing upwards of 40 shots most nights. Our team defense is sloppy. Our passing is sloppy. We are incapable of generating anything both ways, even with a full blue line chocked full of puck-moving D-men.
It's easy for a coach to ride on the coattails of a good roster. When that roster loses just the slightest bit of strength, the team goes downhill. It's one thing to be outplayed. It's another to look like the entire team forgot how to, well, play hockey. To play like a team.
Our goaltending as whole has been doing well and is a big part of it as has Grant and Wagner stepping up to do better then expected.
Getzlaf,Kesler,Fowler,Lindholm and Vatanen,Eaves,Kase all being hurt has contributed greatly to how many shots we have allowed. We probably even have some players playing hurt effecting their overall play such as Vatanen for example who I have heard some people say they think he is playing hurt.
We haven't just lost the slightest bit of strength this season we have lost so much this season. With all are health problems it should be surprise to no one that we have been struggling but there should be a surprise we have as good as a record as we have. I would of expected us to have a much worse record with all the injuries we have had.