I might be missing it, but Cherry isnt talking about "Nyquist". Hes talking about the wings team in general and hes not off base. The wings dont have any physical, forecheckers and theyre fairly easy to play against. Boston uses their physical forecheck as a main ingredient to being arguably the best team in the league.
I know people hate Cherry and hes saying it in an odd way. But put your bias aside and look at the wings. Theyre easy to play against. If youre going to have guys like Nyquist who finish checks like that, maybe the wings should balance it out with some bigger physical guys that can make it harder on the other teams D and make teams not want to play them.
Instead of having 6'3 floaters/softies like Franzen, Sammy and Bertuzzi signed, use one of their spots for a third liner who can scare other teams D on the forecheck. Get on Glendening to finish more checks, replace Andersson with someone on the roster who will finish checks instead of being a 6'2 player who skates by everyone. Instead of 180 lb Drew Miller sign a grittier version of him. I personally think it would make them a better team myself, adding more balance and allowing them to play a more rounded game.
Some people will see its Cherry talking and automatically assume hes wrong but I agree with him, just not how he said it I guess
Easy how? Easier to get in the tough areas? Easier to score? Easier to defend?
Last I checked there are quite a few other teams below us in the standings. More physical teams. If we are easy to play against, what does that make those teams?
Also, yeah Franzen isn't a "tough" player, but he is one of the few consistent scorers we have, and I don't see the reason to replace him (a 25-30 goal scorer) with a third liner just in order to add physicality. Yes you put Samuelsson and Bertuzzi in that list, which makes it even more baffling why Franzen was lumped in with those two in the first place.
Cherry's comment was essentially a "physical good, finesse bad" tirade with the Wings as an easy scapegoat. It was asinine. Nothing about balance. Just about how great Boston is because Lucic "scares" people and how terrible the Red Wings are because guys like Nyquist don't hit. I'll take a tenacious group of guys who go into the dirty areas and come out with the puck over guys who are overtly physical. Guys like Nyquist, Jurco, and Sheahan are tenacious. From what I have heard of Callahan he is tenacious as well.
And the real question is: Is the fault of the Wings really with their physicality at this point?
the hyperbole here is crazy
finishing a check does not equal being a power forward
You have failed to explain why Nyquist finishing a check on a much larger opponent behind the net is a better alternative to pressuring the defenseman and disengaging once he has moved the puck off. It's not like Nyquist shies away from physicality.
