Roman Polak - Poll edition.

[Kiwi]

Polak can PK, unfortunately after that he doesn't have much going for him

Carrick isn't great by any stretch but he can at least move the puck when he needs to and Dermott and Gardiner both look Decent beside him most of the time

 

[Battle Lin]

yes polak is literally only good for battling in front of net and along boards, hes a big physical guy, hes not good at hockey...but carrick isnt good enough D either, theres really nothing hes good at, just decent and ok at most things

if babs feels he needs more size and physicality vs a team, he will go with polak, for better overall he will go with carrick but both arent good enough defenders if you wanna beat great teams in the playoffs

 

[Prince N]

Why chose between Polak or Carrick when they can be so easily replaced with a more physical and talented d-man from outside the organization.

 

[Prince N]

They both stink .com

 

[thewave]

Why chose between Polak or Carrick when they can be so easily replaced with a more physical and talented d-man from outside the organization.

We can't do that right now. This is what we have going into the PO.

 

[Morgs]

Lol I need to hear an explanation for anyone who went with option 1.

2 I can understand if you don't like Carrick, and believe Polak's penalty killing ability outweighs his brutal 5v5 play, but 1?

 

[thewave]

yes polak is literally only good for battling in front of net and along boards, hes a big physical guy, hes not good at hockey...but carrick isnt good enough D either, theres really nothing hes good at, just decent and ok at most things

if babs feels he needs more size and physicality vs a team, he will go with polak, for better overall he will go with carrick but both arent good enough defenders if you wanna beat great teams in the playoffs

Carrick isn't half bad man. He can actually pull off better performances than Z lately.

 

[Prince N]

We can't do that right now. This is what we have going into the PO.

This will be one of the major pitfalls on the PO

 

[DarkKnight]

Carrick has flaws, Polak has flaws, depends what we want on D, taken in totality I honestly see no difference which one we dress. Carrick can't win a board battle, Polak can't make a pass, Carrick gets over powered down low, Polak takes asinine penalties, etc, etc. Both are flawed, but to claim one is way better than other is more about bias than any objective read of overall play.

 

[Prince N]

Find a cheap 5-6 dman that can kill penalties, win board battle, hit, tko people, and make a pass

Who would be ideal for cheap 5-6 dman?

 

[thewave]

Carrick has flaws, Polak has flaws, depends what we want on D, taken in totality I honestly see no difference which one we dress. Carrick can't win a board battle, Polak can't make a pass, Carrick gets over powered down low, Polak takes asinine penalties, etc, etc. Both are flawed, but to claim one is way better than other is more about bias than any objective read of overall play.

Its a weak spot for us. I did quite like Holl though. Too bad he didn't get a longer look. Carrick does get overpowered at times for sure but not sure the results are worse then the mental deficiency that cones with Polak.

Polak is a slab of meat. Carrick is cerebral and can skate + tries to win those battles. Always lean towards skill and smarts. Always, no question.

 

[DarkKnight]

Its a weak spot for us. I did quite like Holl though. Too bad he didn't get a longer look. Carrick does get overpowered at times for sure but not sure the results are worse then the mental deficiency that cones with Polak.

Polak is a slab of meat. Carrick is cerebral and can skate + tries to win those battles. Always lean towards skill and smarts. Always, no question.

I'm no fan of Polak. I will say Carrick has been given every opportunity over the last two years to take the job, this isn't a Leivo situation. He struggled last year down the stretch, was a total non factor in the playoffs and has been uneven this year. I might still give him the edge, but I think Babs wants some grit back there, that's why Polak is still in the mix. For me, it isn't something I get worked up over, because I continually argue, its not like one clearly looks better in totality. Thank god Dermott has arrived....

 

[ToneDog]

Let's see how our dmen play in the playoffs when we play for keeps.

 

[thewave]

Let's see how our dmen play in the playoffs when we play for keeps.

Well Polak is predictable in the PO. He is always the same, other teams target him and always play him the sane way. Just watch old footage of him in the SC finals with SJ. They just exploit him. If the opponent is fast and relatively big, its over, the guy will be slashing and grabbing at guys all night to make up for his lacking ability.

 

[DavePoulin4PM]

Well Polak is predictable in the PO. He is always the same, other teams target him and always play him the sane way. Just watch old footage of him in the SC finals with SJ. They just exploit him. If the opponent is fast and relatively big, its over, the guy will be slashing and grabbing at guys all night to make up for his lacking ability.

You get away with "slashing and grabbing" in the playoffs. You are way off base. In the playoffs is where Polak excels. It becomes a mans game and you can get away with a lot more.. And Polak toes that line VERY well. He is much better in the playoffs than regular season. He played extremely well in the playoffs last year before he got hurt and SJ gave up a 2nd for him because he is built for playoff hockey.

Come playoff time Polak haters will be eating even more crow than they are now.

 

[thewave]

You get away with "slashing and grabbing" in the playoffs. You are way off base. In the playoffs is where Polak excels. It becomes a mans game and you can get away with a lot more.. And Polak toes that line VERY well. He is much better in the playoffs than regular season. He played extremely well in the playoffs last year before he got hurt and SJ gave up a 2nd for him because he is built for playoff hockey.

Come playoff time Polak haters will be eating even more crow than they are now.

Go dig up threads of the SJ finals. Look at what the opinions on Polak were. He was so bad I think we called him the Trojan Horse here. We robbed them of picks for the guy and then he ruined their back end. Just go read up on it and how bad he was.

He is a terribly stupid defender and I love big bodied defenders to the point I take Pronger over Lidstrom without flinching. This guy has Hockey IQ of 22, no catch.

Look at the poll even, you have to pretty special bad that only 4 people think he is good. A maybe isn't even a positive sign, its meh undecided you erase those and its 33 no, 4 yes. Ouch.

 

[shaner8989]

Absolute trash he’s gotta go

 

[Al14]

Carrick is not far better than Polak, so I voted maybe.

I'm not aware of a single D option in the organization that can replace Polak's toughness.

Sure, 5 on 5 he often looks dreadful, but, he's very useful on the PK. His apparent lack of mobility, and, lack of composure with the puck, are often exposed 5 on 5.

I think if we had a better option to pair with him 5 on 5, he might look much better.

I think the injury in the playoffs last season hurt him somewhat. Regardless, I hope to see playoff Polak fully in blossom this spring!

 

[Al14]

Absolute trash he’s gotta go

If that is true, then, how do you explain that Babcock continually inserts him in the lineup?

Also, how could our supposed top notch management team re-sign him?

 

[thewave]

If that is true, then, how do you explain that Babcock continually inserts him in the lineup?

Also, how could our supposed top notch management team re-sign him?

How did management give Clarkson his contract? The answer is all management teams are prone to error.

 

[TMLegend]

Polak has more points than Carrick this season. And he outscored him last season too.

Points aren't everything, but when you're "supposed" to be a decent puck moving defensemen and you're getting outscored by Roman Polak, you've got problems.

I voted maybe, but I'm thinking I probably should've voted yes. Mainly on the count Polak at least has strengths and has special teams value whereas Carrick does what well exactly?

 

[thewave]

Polak has more points than Carrick this season. And he outscored him last season too.

Points aren't everything, but when you're "supposed" to be a decent puck moving defensemen and you're getting outscored by Roman Polak, you've got problems.

I voted maybe, but I'm thinking I probably should've voted yes. Mainly on the count Polak at least has strengths and has special teams value whereas Carrick does what well exactly?

Skate shoot positionally. He is just better at everything except points and the PK I guess. Who cares we should not even be playing either right now if they seriously wanted to contend.

 

[Spirit of 67]

This is interesting. Do you remember when the entire sharks fanbase was blaming him for being the weakest link in their cup run? I have seen Roman first hand cost many many PO series goals against because of his limitations. You can probably still read those reactions today.

I find it rather nervy that San Jose fans feel their #6 defenseman was the weak link on the team.
How can that be?

 

[Iapyi]

I don't vote in loaded polls.

Does "EVERYTHING" right? What player in the history of the game at any level has ever done EVERYTHING right?

At least try to be objective perhaps?

This is interesting. Do you remember when the entire sharks fanbase was blaming him for being the weakest link in their cup run? I have seen Roman first hand cost many many PO series goals against because of his limitations. You can probably still read those reactions today.

So not even one single Sharks fans didn't blame him? Less hyperbole might get you a long way.

 

[Al14]

How did management give Clarkson his contract? The answer is all management teams are prone to error.

Completely different management team! Completely!!!