Owen Sound Attack 2023-24 Off-Season Thread (Part 2)

[Noofgoof]

I think our only hope may be against the Sault.. i didnt find them that much better tonight.. out shot which is the norm.. but if we limit the breakaways it may be our only shot at more than 4 games in the post season

 

[leafsrdue]

29....

 

[Noofgoof]

29....

One more until we can deem the season a success

 

[DCruickshank]

One more until we can deem the season a success

Smart a**

 

[Noofgoof]

Smart a**

We are all thinking it..

 

[ktownfan]

Barlow gets hat rick= Owen Sound win

 

[Noofgoof]

I mean the 30 win thing is great and all and it is a true feat that isnt easy...That being said its also not only a blessing but a curse because we never truely put a full effort in to building a champion or likewise rebuilding a strong base from scratch..we strive for just shy of a .500 win percentage.. thats not overly spectacular.. sure some are a bit better then others but none over the top gunning for it...I love the team and understand the financial aspect but at what point does a good playoff run out weight 2-4 extra home games a season..

 

[OHL4Life]

I mean the 30 win thing is great and all and it is a true feat that isnt easy...That being said its also not only a blessing but a curse because we never truely put a full effort in to building a champion or likewise rebuilding a strong base from scratch..we strive for just shy of a .500 win percentage.. thats not overly spectacular.. sure some are a bit better then others but none over the top gunning for it...I love the team and understand the financial aspect but at what point does a good playoff run out weight 2-4 extra home games a season..

they built a team that should have contended this year without having to make 10 trades, why it didnt work is beyond me, i hate the way they play when i see them (they get hemmed in all the time, looks like its by design system wise), but the roster on paper as built should be as good as any.

they would have won suzusks year of they had the 97 goalie that was suppose to be around.

 

[ktownfan]

I also question the coaching, I'm a big Stewart fan, we all know this, and would love him to get more time. But I noticed yesterday that the coach had the 4th line out at least 4 times against Sudbury top line, (which could be top 3 lines in the league). You are on home ice and have the last change, just seemed odd to be putting your 4th against thier 1st intentionally. They got scored on once. To me you need 3 coaches on the bench to handle the sometimes chaotic pace of the game. Just an observation, and yes I can't believe I'm agreeing with OHL4life, but their d zone is just a mess, has been as long as I've watched, and how many replays of goals against do we see with your D laying flat on the ice, I mean for extended periods of time. I think simplifying your D zone would give some relief to your goalies for sure

 

[KFawcett]

they built a team that should have contended this year without having to make 10 trades, why it didnt work is beyond me, i hate the way they play when i see them (they get hemmed in all the time, looks like its by design system wise), but the roster on paper as built should be as good as any
they would have won suzusks yhere iar of they had the 97 goalie that was suppose to be around.

Your 100% right there are a # of reasons for this season but I won't get into that. I would add if you look at the lineup they would have iced in the Covid non season it would have been very solid and most likely Tanger, Hish and Hillsy behind the bench. I maintain that lineup with maybe a minor tweek or 2 should have contended.

 

[dirty12]

I also question the coaching, I'm a big Stewart fan, we all know this, and would love him to get more time. But I noticed yesterday that the coach had the 4th line out at least 4 times against Sudbury top line, (which could be top 3 lines in the league). You are on home ice and have the last change, just seemed odd to be putting your 4th against thier 1st intentionally. They got scored on once. To me you need 3 coaches on the bench to handle the sometimes chaotic pace of the game. Just an observation, and yes I can't believe I'm agreeing with OHL4life, but their d zone is just a mess, has been as long as I've watched, and how many replays of goals against do we see with your D laying flat on the ice, I mean for extended periods of time. I think simplifying your D zone would give some relief to your goalies for sure

It’s not easy to match ines with the wolves top line as they’re always on; PP, PK, final minutes, pretty much every offensive zone face-off. It seemed Musty, Dvorsky, and Goyette played 9 of the final 12 minutes, and 30 minutes each for the game.

 

[jamemcca]

they built a team that should have contended this year without having to make 10 trades, why it didnt work is beyond me, i hate the way they play when i see them (they get hemmed in all the time, looks like its by design system wise), but the roster on paper as built should be as good as any.

they would have won suzusks year of they had the 97 goalie that was suppose to be around.

Coaching has been bad. Need to address in the summer with a big hire, seems to be on an tread mill with this department

Who was the 97 goalie you refer to? You are right should have had a lot of success that season

 

[HockeyPops]

McNiven, I assume?

 

[OHL4Life]

McNiven, I assume?

yes, i forgot his name. if he goes back to the ohl the attack are champs without having to bottom out. same this year, if the coaching gets it together the attack should push hard for a championship, but they play so poorly in their own zone its hard to generate anything.

 

[Stellar29]

yes, i forgot his name. if he goes back to the ohl the attack are champs without having to bottom out. same this year, if the coaching gets it together the attack should push hard for a championship, but they play so poorly in their own zone its hard to generate anything.

From a strategy point of view, when you have elite goaltending like the Attack do, would you not prioritize defense first and expand off your strengths? I can't for the life of me make sense of what they are trying to accomplish in their own zone under the current system. They hang onto pucks, often way too long, and at times content to cycle in their own end. The first option on the breakout is often a forward on the half wall standing still who feeds a forward in the middle. The forward up the middle often has no puck support and is left with a cut back at the offensive blueline to wait on support which buys the defenders time to recover on the back check and the Attack can't capitalize on any positional advantages. Or they dump and chase. The end result is not a lot of offensive zone time with puck possession and usually a lop sided shot total in favor of the opposition. It feels like they spend an awful amount of time chasing the play as a result.

I generally can't tell if the D group is as bad as it seems at times or if it's more of a product of their systems. Bit of both maybe? They've been really weak in my opinion on net front protection all year. George mitigates a lot with his rebound control but too many bodies hanging out in prime real estate without getting boxed out or sticks tied up for my liking.

 

[bobber]

yes, i forgot his name. if he goes back to the ohl the attack are champs without having to bottom out. same this year, if the coaching gets it together the attack should push hard for a championship, but they play so poorly in their own zone its hard to generate anything.

It's hard to watch the effort the Attack put in the defensive end. Sop scored a goal right in close with 3 attack players behind him. They never picked him up until the puck was in the net. It's not what you would normally see from that squad in the past. Looks like a coaching issue. They do have leaders on that squad so it has to be something else.

 

[OHL4Life]

It's hard to watch the effort the Attack put in the defensive end. Sop scored a goal right in close with 3 attack players behind him. They never picked him up until the puck was in the net. It's not what you would normally see from that squad in the past. Looks like a coaching issue. They do have leaders on that squad so it has to be something else.

thats what i think, they look like they are very tenative or unsure in their own end, and its been all year. you would think after 20 games or so they would make a change

 

[leafsrdue]

The coaches also keep trotting out the same two soft defencemen against the other team's top players and on the PK. Did we not get the big guy from the Petes to fill the shut down role? #9 is great on the PP and making offensive plays but is weak on defence.

 

[Millpond]

thats what i think, they look like they are very tenative or unsure in their own end, and its been all year. you would think after 20 games or so they would make a change

They did make a change, about 10 games in ....

 

[OSattackfan]

The coaches also keep trotting out the same two soft defencemen against the other team's top players and on the PK. Did we not get the big guy from the Petes to fill the shut down role? #9 is great on the PP and making offensive plays but is weak on defence.

I've been saying that all year about #9. Great offensive player, but is too slow skating back, weak on playing the body, and uses the stick way too much slashing / hooking. Not a pk player at all.

 

[ktownfan]

The sedley comments are warranted I guess, elite offensively for sure, but PK maybe not. I also am shocked at how often K Smith is caught up the ice and out of postion. Guys seem to sneak behind him regularly for breakaways, and doesn't seem to use his size. Jordan is caught laying on the ice so often, I'm amazed it isn't corrected. In these players' defense, I'm not sure how much coaching is going on.

 

[leafsrdue]

These guys have played the same way all year. Coaching does not seem to have any impact.

 

[Spills]

The sedley comments are warranted I guess, elite offensively for sure, but PK maybe not. I also am shocked at how often K Smith is caught up the ice and out of postion. Guys seem to sneak behind him regularly for breakaways, and doesn't seem to use his size. Jordan is caught laying on the ice so often, I'm amazed it isn't corrected. In these players' defense, I'm not sure how much coaching is going on.

They do not have a D coach. Agree they need to run 3 coaches on the bench too. To fast of game for 2 guys

 

[ktownfan]

These guys have played the same way all year. Coaching does not seem to have any impact.

That could be the problem, Coaches should have an impact.

They do not have a D coach. Agree they need to run 3 coaches on the bench too. To fast of game for 2 guys

The "head coach" is running the D by the looks of it. 3 is definitely needed

 

[dirty12]

These guys have played the same way all year. Coaching does not seem to have any impact.

The ktown comment does not describe the play of Smith in Peterborough. The only complaint of Smith’s defensive play there could be he handled the puck in the D zone like a hand grenade with the pin already pulled. That’s ability not coaching.