even thought the Sharks got a lot of shots on goal, i thought that we played better defensively. we kept them to the outside more, won more 1on1 battles. just plain worked harder at team defence, IMO. that and KP standing on his head.
still wondering about Cappy. Clutter plays 18 min, and Chasey 13? WTF?
Vanek is lazy. great hands, but lazy. i would be all for trading him for a stud defensive defenceman.
Dehaan looked great. my only concern is his health. PLEASE stay healthy!
i really think KO has turned the corner. he just seems so much more comfortable. confident.
AMac still with some brutal give aways. he needs to go back to KISS. too fancy sometimes.
i wonder where Strome will fit in?
I would not call Vanek lazy, but rather his play lacking hustle. This may sound a little strange, but I have watched Vanek since his college days and this always comes up. He had the label of being lazy back in those days already when Parise and him battled in the WCHA with similar success but those totally different styles of play. Parise all hustle, Vanek all skill.
Vanek is a big body that skates somewhat slow with longer and slower strides than most Islander forwards. To amplify this he is basically always doing the deep forecheck trying to direct the play, meaning he is hanging back on the backcheck. That has been his way of playing since I can remember. It is his role and most likely the way the coaching staff wants him to play. As a winger I do not think this makes him a defensive liability at all. Wingers are
not necessarily required to hustle from goal line to goal line on every shift. Vanek's defensive value comes into play when he gets the puck on his stick and can use his hands and vision.
He will often get the outlet pass or clearing attempt in the neutral zone and has to delay or distribute the puck to a breaking forward. This means he will be under pressure from the opposing team and here you want him to not loose the puck at any circumstances. IMO this is Vanek's most valuable addition to a working defensive NYI system, to help get the puck out and then distribute it in a meaningful way that does not let the opposing team gain the puck in the neutral zone and catch the Islanders in transistion. That said where Vanek's defensive play becomes a problem is when he has poor puck control like yesterday.
You may agree or disagree, for me this has been the best explanation I can find for why his play might look "lazy" on the ice.
