sipowicz
The thrill is gone
- Mar 16, 2011
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wheelers game was all about speed, he’s lost that gear and the end is near!
Player Discussion: Blake Wheeler
- Thread starter Hunter368
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wheelers game was all about speed, he’s lost that gear and the end is near!
My Wheeler Wishlist for 21-22:
- Fewer minutes
- Fewer 1st-line minutes
- More efficient shift lengths, including PP
- Quicker out of the blocks
- Hand the post-gamer presser reigns off to Stats, Lowry, JMo, anyone really
A healthier, more responsibly-used Blake makes for a better Jets, IMO.
- Fewer minutes
- Fewer 1st-line minutes
- More efficient shift lengths, including PP
- Quicker out of the blocks
- Hand the post-gamer presser reigns off to Stats, Lowry, JMo, anyone really
A healthier, more responsibly-used Blake makes for a better Jets, IMO.
I wonder if this is the year we see Wheeler transition to a 2nd line role. Play with Dubois and Stastny most of the year.
Though with the lineup as deep as it’s ever been, I don’t see Mo making that change just yet. One more kick at the cup, and what not, with his favourite line. CSW line.
Though with the lineup as deep as it’s ever been, I don’t see Mo making that change just yet. One more kick at the cup, and what not, with his favourite line. CSW line.
- Mar 10, 2010
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Its hard to say
I think we need to see CSW with consistently better D pairs to judge how far they have truly fallen? At his peak Blake was one of the top play drivers in the NHL but those days are gone. If they are still getting caved with better D and a more aggressive pinching system to sustain their zone time then Kyle and Mark have not grown enough to take over the thrown and maybe a shuffle is in order.
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Wheeler's first line days are over but he could be a very good second line player, nothing wrong with that. Scheifele , Ehlers and Connor has to be the number 1 line and Dubois, Wheeler and whoever the second line.
Teemusalami204
Registered User
Offensively Blake can put up close to a ppg and I have no problem with him on the first line.
defensively he can’t keep up to other teams
Top lines and this is a huge problem. Add that Connor and sheif are top 10 for worst defensive forwards in nhl and it’s playing with fire keeping him with them.
defensively he can’t keep up to other teams
Top lines and this is a huge problem. Add that Connor and sheif are top 10 for worst defensive forwards in nhl and it’s playing with fire keeping him with them.
What a coincidence that all the Jets forwards became horrible defensively as soon as they started playing in front of one of the worst defence corps in the league…
Nope. Ehlers, the one man breakout has continued to excel.
I’d be curious to see your supporting evidence that they are in the bottom 10. That puts about 400 forwards above them.
Teemusalami204
Registered User
There was charts going around for advance stats last couple years. Connor and wheeler were 1 and 2 and sheif was 7 or 8th worst iirc
around the same time sheif called advanced stats hogwash. I was arguing sheif said that because he knows how bad his stats look
- Jun 10, 2014
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It is really just CSW and neither Connor nor Scheifele were that strong defensively before. Scheifele was better defensively earlier in his career but the change was him, not the D behind him.
Stastny and Dubois are better suited to compensate for Wheeler's weak D than C & S are. Ehlers improves the defensive play of the 1st line. So swap Wheeler and Ehlers. Pretty obvious really.
That still leaves the 1st line with 2 lightweight wingers who are not going to be great at board battles. Just have to try to avoid them as much as possible.
Teemusalami204
Registered User
I’m not sure if we can blame the defense on how bad they are. They were most likely just as bad when we had a good top 6. It was just masked
I think you are misremembering. Laine was still on the team and he pretty much was at the bottom of the Jets forwards constantly.
garret posted this just today actually. he's been trending down for a couple years, although his def. game i thought was fine in 19-20. although, he did play with ehlers alot that year (wheeler was at 2C) and players generally play less defense with Ehlers.
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scheifele's defensive game/#s started out bad....but seemed to pick it up when away from wheeler. he was playing with a combo of Ehlers and KC or Copp tho, and generally with ehlers you just play less-defense so that's not surprising.
stastny i thought was fine defensively this year. Lowry of course is great. for the most part i think the Fwds are average to good defensively, with a few that are questionable (Conor, Scheifele, Wheeler, PLD). Problem is, Maurice stacks CSW together who have been quite poor over the past few years. a little more balance will mitigate their weaknesses imo.
Don’t need puck cycling and board battles when you keep possession entering the zone and score off the rush more a la TML.
- Jun 10, 2014
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Actually, I think they have been pretty good off the rush the last couple of seasons. Also not too bad at extended possession in the O zone. The problem has been pretty much limited to the D zone, though that then overflows into the N zone.
But with Ehlers in line 1 there will at least be 1 guy who hustles to back check. That alone will help quite a bit. Meanwhile Dubois and Stastny are at least adequate defensively.
S-D-W will mean that PLD will have to be the guy doing most of the scoring. But that is a role he was good in with CBJ.
Then next year he gets Perfetti to work with and the year after he gets Lucius on the RW, a goal scorer.
Duke749
Savannah Ghost Pirates
Agreed. Dubois was good leading the rush and being more of a triggerman in Columbus.
Perfetti should fit in really well with him when he's ready.
First line just needs to use speed and skill in the offensive end to mIntain possession and to break other teams down. This is where activating our defense will pay dividends.
WolfHouse
Registered User
- Oct 4, 2020
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Panarin was the trigger man on that line without a doubt not PLD...
PLD can score but he’s a lot more Wheeler than an Ehlers or Connor
nobody imp0rtant
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Hunter368
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- Nov 8, 2011
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