Speculation: Acq./Rost. Bldg./Cap/Lines etc. Part LXX (2016 TDL Pre-Game Pt2)(2/29-Laich traded!!)

[Dr John Carlson]

I think Niskanen is a pretty smart player, but agreed on the rest.

Ovechkin's dumbness gets overlooked all the time, IMO.

 

[txpd]

Can't say yet about Orlov? Have you watched him at all? He's making the same type of mistakes that you called Green a nitwit for, only even more frequently.

Burakovsky is probably the next worst offender in terms of terrible, dumb, inexcusable turnovers. He had one play on Monday where he fired a random, no-look one-touch pass at his own blueline, keeping the puck in his own zone. It's the type of play that would be lauded if he was a defenseman for the other team. And that's hardly the only time he's made massively risky plays with little potential for reward. Hopefully it's that he's young, but it's not an encouraging sign about his hockey sense.

Chimera is completely lost any time the play isn't "cycle endlessly" or "streak down the wing and crash the net in transition." He does his job effectively, but his job tends to be remarkably simple. Watching him try to gel with Kuznetsov last post-season was pretty hilarious. When Kuzy hit him in stride in transition it was great, but any time Kuzy tried to set up a prolonged offensive zone possession, Chimera was like a deer in headlights.

Wilson is similar to Chimera, though less effective and with more dimwit penalties. He used to be a cruise missile on the forecheck, but he was pretty much a puck chaser. He's been neutered lately, but it's not like he's replaced that forecheck tenacity with a newfound ability to read plays. And as I said before, dimwit penalties. Leading the league in penalties taken is not something to be proud of, even if some of them are reputation calls.

Weber is just atrocious in his ability to read plays and gap up properly. Not sure why you think he may be smart. Not sure what you're holding out for with Latta, either.

Ovie is massively talented and the team is immensely lucky to have him, but he's not a particularly smart hockey player. Watching him struggle through his slumps is pretty much proof of that, as he keeps trying the same things over and over again to no avail. How many times have you watched him skate in 1-on-3? Try the same move against defensemen that they learned to cover in 2011? Be completely out of position in the defensive zone?

I also think you overrate the hockey smarts of Oshie, Niskanen, and Orpik. They aren't dumb players, but they aren't particularly smart ones either. They also lost one of their smarter players in Joel Ward (albeit, replacing him with Williams is an upgrade in almost every department, including hockey IQ). This team still has plenty of dumb players, and I certainly don't see any trend away from that.

wow....brutal. this is not a compliment to this team. I am now lowering my expectations for this group. I kind of thought they had a chance to go all the way. Maybe I should throttle that back and hope they can make the playoffs.

 

[maybam]

Green would get beat of the rush or pinned in the corners. Orlov is able to to retrieve pucks and take the hits but he then follows it up by making atrocious high risk passes out of the zone from time to time. I'm sure Green has done that but not at Orlov's frequency.

 

[g00n]

Green would get beat of the rush or pinned in the corners. Orlov is able to to retrieve pucks and take the hits but he then follows it up by making atrocious high risk passes out of the zone from time to time. I'm sure Green has done that but not at Orlov's frequency.

I'm not ready to bury Orlov just yet. His positives outweigh his negatives, imo. Few players survive in the NHL making the same basic mistake over and over like that, and I doubt he'll find himself out of the league any time soon. He'll adjust.

I also get the impression that some of the forwards are in on it, as they can be seen cruising at center ice or streaking up the middle looking for his passes. Note the quotes from Trotz in the post-game talk for the Cbus game. Players have been freelancing and trying out things for a while now, all because of the boredom of the long season. There are multiple culprits in those cutesy plays.

It's possible the "leadership group" on this team is coming around to the playoff way of thinking while Orlov is still experimenting. Trotz is sending a message to cut the crap. I think Orlov will still make mistakes, but less glaring/frequently.

 

[Alexander the Gr8]

The biggest problem with Green last year in the playoffs is that he was scared to get hit. The Isles 4th line and the Rangers targeted him, he was a liability. Orlov embraces the physicality, he won't let us down this way. Green made better decisions with the puck, but he's older and more experienced.

Orlov's mistakes are easy to fix. He just has to reverse the puck to Orpik on the other side or behind the net when in doubt. Then, they wait for the C to come back and help the puck out. Worst case scenario, he ices the puck.

 

[CapitalsCupReality]

is hockey IQ fixable, much less easily fixable? hopefully he's at a minimum pretty coachable. He could be targeted as easily as Green or anyone else and will likely be this playoffs. He's not invulnerable. If I'm an opposing coach I'm dying to get my offense out against his pair. Probably why he's had a vet babysitter lately.

 

[g00n]

is hockey IQ fixable, much less easily fixable? hopefully he's at a minimum pretty coachable. He could be targeted as easily as Green or anyone else and will likely be this playoffs. He's not invulnerable. If I'm an opposing coach I'm dying to get my offense out against his pair. Probably why he's had a vet babysitter lately.

I don't think hockey IQ is his problem. He has great instincts and positioning other than a few specific high risk plays. He probably knows the safe plays but just lacks the discipline at this point in his career to value them.

 

[CapitalsCupReality]

When I see him make plays like "pizza", where the smart play is a simple reverse, it makes me wonder.

 

[artilector]

I don't think hockey IQ is his problem. He has great instincts and positioning other than a few specific high risk plays. He probably knows the safe plays but just lacks the discipline at this point in his career to value them.

Heh... maybe it's complicated.

I am just thinking, a bit off-topic, there's a multiplayer game I used to play a lot... and was actually trying to cut out the overly aggressive plays that got me obliterated.. while trying to retain a generally aggressive style... Honestly, I wasn't really able to do it. I could play "passive" or "super aggressive", trying to fine tune it to "smart aggressive" was just... hard... and in fact watching others, it was pretty much the intangible that made certain players fantastic -- the ability to play on the edge of aggression, but always having the sixth sense to pull back and never give opponents the easy kill.

Maybe we kind of saw it with Green -- he wasn't able to fine-tune things, either, and he sort of eventually just went into "passive" mode, becoming a regular "good puck-moving guy with some warts", but it cost him pretty much his entire offensive flash (or at least it did in combination with injuries).

Probably nobody knows if Orlov can "turn off" the "crazy risk" decisions soon, or at all. We'll just see.

We've mentioned it as a joke before... but if there comes a day when Caps decide they can't wait for Orlov to find that balance on D... they really should try him at forward, no? He's got moves, he's got physicality... sort of like another version of Oshie!

 

[Bananas]

Heh... maybe it's complicated.

I am just thinking, a bit off-topic, there's a multiplayer game I used to play a lot... and was actually trying to cut out the overly aggressive plays that got me obliterated.. while trying to retain a generally aggressive style... Honestly, I wasn't really able to do it. I could play "passive" or "super aggressive", trying to fine tune it to "smart aggressive" was just... hard... and in fact watching others, it was pretty much the intangible that made certain players fantastic -- the ability to play on the edge of aggression, but always having the sixth sense to pull back and never give opponents the easy kill.

Maybe we kind of saw it with Green -- he wasn't able to fine-tune things, either, and he sort of eventually just went into "passive" mode, becoming a regular "good puck-moving guy with some warts", but it cost him pretty much his entire offensive flash (or at least it did in combination with injuries).

Probably nobody knows if Orlov can "turn off" the "crazy risk" decisions soon, or at all. We'll just see.

We've mentioned it as a joke before... but if there comes a day when Caps decide they can't wait for Orlov to find that balance on D... they really should try him at forward, no? He's got moves, he's got physicality... sort of like another version of Oshie!

Play him at forward next year and we can protect 3 D plus him from expansion and still go 10 players total...genius.

 

[Raikkonen]

Orlov responded with a good game.

I say screw F experiments! Make him future top-4 LD if it's in the cards.

 

[Alexander the Gr8]

We could absolutely make Orlov another Burns/Byfuglien type player. I think he'd be as good on the wing as he is on defense.

 

[ALLCAPSALLTHETIME]

Play him at forward next year and we can protect 3 D plus him from expansion and still go 10 players total...genius.

Ahhh...the days of 3D. Lol.

 

[artilector]

Orlov responded with a good game.

I say screw F experiments! Make him future top-4 LD if it's in the cards.

And if not, just trade?

 

[Bananas]

Ahhh...the days of 3D. Lol.

You can push him back to D after draft if so desired. That way you can protect Orlov, Carlson, Alzner and Niskanen plus 6 other F. Seems like an idea at least...

 

[Hivemind]

I don't see Orlov being a particularly forecheking player or cycler, and his slapshot would not be utilized well on the wing. Burns was a forward who got converted to defense. Byfuglien is an effective winger because he's a giant who can crash the net. I think Orlov would be pretty marginal as a winger.

 

[ALLCAPSALLTHETIME]

You can push him back to D after draft if so desired. That way you can protect Orlov, Carlson, Alzner and Niskanen plus 6 other F. Seems like an idea at least...

I wasn't laughing at your idea. I was reminiscing about Ron Wilson's 3 Dmen on the ice deployment at times. :p

 

[HecticGlow]

Our offence is worrying me more than our defence at the moment. Sure, D is vital in playoffs - but the very best D will let in a goal or two, it's mostly on your O to get that back to even.

If I'm not mistaken none of our forwards have managed to score an even handed goal in three games - and I think Alex's PPG is the sole goal they've scored during those games too. That's got to change, and fast, if Holtby is to get his wins record.

 

[txpd]

I worry that they are the Capitals. Beyond that I find it really hard to get any solid grasp on anything the Caps are doing and how it translates to the playoffs.

Trotz throws out line combinations v the Flyers that have not been seen yet and plays Orpik and Carlson apart. That could mean several things and the Flyers wont know which it was.

I jump to no conclusions

 

[hockeykicker]

Backstrom on ice for practice per khyursdan

 

[Alexander the Gr8]

Good news. We're considerably weaker defensively and in transition when he's not there. MJ is too soft in comparison.

 

[hockeykicker]

Backstrom is taking rushes but isn't in the main lines per khurysdan

 

[txpd]

Backstrom is taking rushes but isn't in the main lines per khurysdan

which means he is skating with the scratches? if that's the case, he probably isn't ready to play

 

[hockeykicker]

which means he is skating with the scratches? if that's the case, he probably isn't ready to play

True. But he was just sitting around last practice

 

[hockeykicker]