ColePens
RIP Fugu Buffaloed & parabola
I was at the game last night and decided to watch as a scout as opposed to being a fan. I wrote some notes down and figured to share them in a more holistic view of the Penguins that contains some x's/o's as well. I've been to about 5 games this year and watching the game from that perspective allows me to watch away from the puck. This will be a combination of what I see live and how we see things on television.
First.. let me start off by stating the obvious. Here are the biggest issues 1-5 that the team has. Of course there are additional issues, but here are the absolute top 5.
1) Players/Coach Chemistry: Everyone wants to point the finger and blame, but the blame needs to go all around. I've said it for YEARS. You can have the best system the game of hockey has ever seen, but if you cannot get the players to play it - it will fail and look awful. Period. From everything MJ/Tocchet said to what we see the players doing is completely different. It's as if I'm reading a screen play of Jaws but I'm watching Sharknado.
Right now the players and coaches are saying/doing completely opposite things.
2) Identity: Best discussion to have because this team has lacked an identity for 5 years. DB took over and we just became this adult league hockey team that played off skill and we called it "our game" but I really don't think the Pens have a game. They haven't for 6 years now. MJ was trying to give them an identity to play like Babcock and puck possession teams, but we still do not have an identity. The argument is simple - Do you want to be a big team? Do you want to be a fast team? Do you want to be a skilled team? Do you want to be a puck possession team? Which one is it? Pick one and build around it.
3) Accountability/Discipline: I'm not going to dive into this too much. The players are not accountable for anything. From the Kunitz saga, to Sid's poor season, to Sutter not battling at all and never being called out. We laugh when Craig Adams is always given the benefit of the doubt but it isn't even the biggest accountability issue the Pens have. For what the coaches say to what players like Sutter, Sid, and Kunitz do is amazing. The fact no discipline has been dished out, except Kunitz being moved to the 3rd line for a few games, is bad. The best players deserve benched sometimes. I remember Subban getting benched. I remember when Toews had his hissy fit and was called out by his coach. I remember Geno getting a ton of flack under MT.
4) Defensive Responsibility/Urgency: I use the word urgency but not in the meaning of rushing. That leads to mistakes. I think this is a huge issue that the team plays as if nothing matters. Nothing is ever on the line. In 2009 they were so pissed that they lost the Cup, that every game felt as if their lives were on the line. Complacency is a scary thing. This organization is complacent and it shows on the ice. The forwards do not backcheck as if every shift matters. The defense do not finish hits or fill lanes as if the next goal makes all the difference. I know it's a long season but you would at least expect to see it occasionally. We do not. It's a BIG time issue. You can even see it off faceoffs.
5) Roster/Player Management: This one is on the coaches. It's been discussed to all degrees. You guys/gals know this one. It's no secret. Every team has their same issues. We have guys who are ready to make NHL 4th line differences but we are just so sure Adams is the guy. We have guys who don't fit their role or play their offwing and we wonder why they struggle (cough Jarome Iginla). We have a powerplay where we want Letang/Crosby to be shooters but they don't ever want to take a shot when we have guys like Malkin/Perron who ONLY want to shoot play for rebounds/passes.
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X's/O's: One big mess that this team has had for years... :
Defense: Neutral Zone/D-Zone
We all complain about offense but probably one of the biggest flaws I've seen with the team since the DB era took over is actually the neutral zone/defensive zone. We actually cause more issues than we need to have. Let me start off by saying the forwards are just as much to blame as the defense because defensive responsibility is something this team does not take seriously. Ovechkin actually backchecks harder (this season) than 90% of our forwards. That puts the defense in a really tight spot. We have poor gap and our feet are still.
The neutral zone coverage off a set breakout is the weirdest thing I've seen. You have 2 forwards forechecking (1 in first, 2nd on a delay) and you have 3 players back by the red line. Right off the bat we have terrible gap and are flat footed. In addition we have our 2 defensemen wide almost at the faceoff dots and the center or first forward back is hovering the center of the ice. This is why we constantly get burned up the middle when transition breaks down.
In the d-zone it's very similar to DB's zone concept late in the DB era. The only difference is our forwards are more collapsed. It's a reactionary defense which doesn't work in the NHL. They cover their zones and make sure the front of the net is covered, but without moving your feet you aren't going to win battles.
For as much talent as we actually have on our defense, we hinder ourselves by playing this way. A lot of the gap/transition issues could be handled by more pressure up front w/ activated defense but we absolutely have to have backcheckers dedicated to playing defense. Right now we don't have that so we are constantly pushing backwards as opposed to forward.
Passing:
A lot of discussion is about how awful our breakouts are and how out of sync we look. Here's the deal... it's a combination of Pens not playing the way the coach wants them to and the poor decisions the players are making. If the pass has to be a board pass, we will try to force it through skates. If the support has to come over for a chip play, we will try to make a direct pass instead. This is 100% on chemistry and not doing what the coaches want them to do. This takes us back to the #1 issue the team has. If the players cannot play this way, the coaches need to simplify it.
I wanted to bring this up because the live experience is PERFECT to see how the passes are being set up. The forwards have NO clue where to go on the breakout. Sometimes we dump. Sometimes we carry. Sometimes we chip. They have no clue when to do each one. That's why it looks so out of sync. It stems from chemistry and the fact that the players are just not buying into MJ's system at all. What is discussed and the product are 2 different things.
If anyone is going to a game, take your eyes off the puck and watch how the movement of forwards goes up the ice. You never see the same thing. They just have no clue what to do on a consistent basis.
-----------------------------------------------
And now let's take an individual view at the players. Here are four players contributing to this hot mess we have on our hands:
1) Sidney Crosby: Watching him live was deflating. His decision making is worse than it looks on television. He takes big loops away from the puck instead of stopping/starting. He doesn't look engaged at all. On the PK he tried to high stick the puck out of the air instead of just batting it with his hand. His passes are garbage and seriously it's so disappointing to watch him play. In fact, a lot of the bad passes you see on tv are worse live. There isn't a Penguin player anywhere in the area. Sid is just guessing because he doesn't want to take the puck to a corner (or to the net) and go to work. It's very sad.
2) Chris Kunitz: Complete mess. Plays as if he's pissed off that the he even has to dress to collect a paycheck.
3) Sutter: Surprisingly Sutter looks worse live, too. His defensive responsibility is overrated. He goes into the boards weaker than Pesonen, Beau, Miro Satan, and Sykora combined. For a guy who is given credit for his hustle he just doesn't. He plays Craig Adams hockey. He's going to be safe and stand around in the defensive side of the ice because he can't make a mistake if he's already standing there. As soon as he goes into a corner we all know the outcome. The puck is going the other way.
4) Evgeni Malkin: Weirdly the guy is buying into the system more than most, but he also looks like he's trying to push too hard to be the savior. Every shift he's looking to be the hero instead of just playing the right way. That's why Geno's line either looks the best or the worst shift-to-shift. You can feel his energy wanting to take over the game but he's pushing entirely too hard. He's desperately trying to score a goal each shift and that just isn't the way to play the game. You just have to focus on each shift doing what you CAN do. You aren't going to score a goal every shift. It just isn't going to happen. He's really forcing the play . On television I thought he was being lazy like the 3 above him, but that's actually not the case. Very shocking.
First.. let me start off by stating the obvious. Here are the biggest issues 1-5 that the team has. Of course there are additional issues, but here are the absolute top 5.
1) Players/Coach Chemistry: Everyone wants to point the finger and blame, but the blame needs to go all around. I've said it for YEARS. You can have the best system the game of hockey has ever seen, but if you cannot get the players to play it - it will fail and look awful. Period. From everything MJ/Tocchet said to what we see the players doing is completely different. It's as if I'm reading a screen play of Jaws but I'm watching Sharknado.
Right now the players and coaches are saying/doing completely opposite things.
2) Identity: Best discussion to have because this team has lacked an identity for 5 years. DB took over and we just became this adult league hockey team that played off skill and we called it "our game" but I really don't think the Pens have a game. They haven't for 6 years now. MJ was trying to give them an identity to play like Babcock and puck possession teams, but we still do not have an identity. The argument is simple - Do you want to be a big team? Do you want to be a fast team? Do you want to be a skilled team? Do you want to be a puck possession team? Which one is it? Pick one and build around it.
3) Accountability/Discipline: I'm not going to dive into this too much. The players are not accountable for anything. From the Kunitz saga, to Sid's poor season, to Sutter not battling at all and never being called out. We laugh when Craig Adams is always given the benefit of the doubt but it isn't even the biggest accountability issue the Pens have. For what the coaches say to what players like Sutter, Sid, and Kunitz do is amazing. The fact no discipline has been dished out, except Kunitz being moved to the 3rd line for a few games, is bad. The best players deserve benched sometimes. I remember Subban getting benched. I remember when Toews had his hissy fit and was called out by his coach. I remember Geno getting a ton of flack under MT.
4) Defensive Responsibility/Urgency: I use the word urgency but not in the meaning of rushing. That leads to mistakes. I think this is a huge issue that the team plays as if nothing matters. Nothing is ever on the line. In 2009 they were so pissed that they lost the Cup, that every game felt as if their lives were on the line. Complacency is a scary thing. This organization is complacent and it shows on the ice. The forwards do not backcheck as if every shift matters. The defense do not finish hits or fill lanes as if the next goal makes all the difference. I know it's a long season but you would at least expect to see it occasionally. We do not. It's a BIG time issue. You can even see it off faceoffs.
5) Roster/Player Management: This one is on the coaches. It's been discussed to all degrees. You guys/gals know this one. It's no secret. Every team has their same issues. We have guys who are ready to make NHL 4th line differences but we are just so sure Adams is the guy. We have guys who don't fit their role or play their offwing and we wonder why they struggle (cough Jarome Iginla). We have a powerplay where we want Letang/Crosby to be shooters but they don't ever want to take a shot when we have guys like Malkin/Perron who ONLY want to shoot play for rebounds/passes.
---------------------------------------------------------
X's/O's: One big mess that this team has had for years... :
Defense: Neutral Zone/D-Zone
We all complain about offense but probably one of the biggest flaws I've seen with the team since the DB era took over is actually the neutral zone/defensive zone. We actually cause more issues than we need to have. Let me start off by saying the forwards are just as much to blame as the defense because defensive responsibility is something this team does not take seriously. Ovechkin actually backchecks harder (this season) than 90% of our forwards. That puts the defense in a really tight spot. We have poor gap and our feet are still.
The neutral zone coverage off a set breakout is the weirdest thing I've seen. You have 2 forwards forechecking (1 in first, 2nd on a delay) and you have 3 players back by the red line. Right off the bat we have terrible gap and are flat footed. In addition we have our 2 defensemen wide almost at the faceoff dots and the center or first forward back is hovering the center of the ice. This is why we constantly get burned up the middle when transition breaks down.
In the d-zone it's very similar to DB's zone concept late in the DB era. The only difference is our forwards are more collapsed. It's a reactionary defense which doesn't work in the NHL. They cover their zones and make sure the front of the net is covered, but without moving your feet you aren't going to win battles.
For as much talent as we actually have on our defense, we hinder ourselves by playing this way. A lot of the gap/transition issues could be handled by more pressure up front w/ activated defense but we absolutely have to have backcheckers dedicated to playing defense. Right now we don't have that so we are constantly pushing backwards as opposed to forward.
Passing:
A lot of discussion is about how awful our breakouts are and how out of sync we look. Here's the deal... it's a combination of Pens not playing the way the coach wants them to and the poor decisions the players are making. If the pass has to be a board pass, we will try to force it through skates. If the support has to come over for a chip play, we will try to make a direct pass instead. This is 100% on chemistry and not doing what the coaches want them to do. This takes us back to the #1 issue the team has. If the players cannot play this way, the coaches need to simplify it.
I wanted to bring this up because the live experience is PERFECT to see how the passes are being set up. The forwards have NO clue where to go on the breakout. Sometimes we dump. Sometimes we carry. Sometimes we chip. They have no clue when to do each one. That's why it looks so out of sync. It stems from chemistry and the fact that the players are just not buying into MJ's system at all. What is discussed and the product are 2 different things.
If anyone is going to a game, take your eyes off the puck and watch how the movement of forwards goes up the ice. You never see the same thing. They just have no clue what to do on a consistent basis.
-----------------------------------------------
And now let's take an individual view at the players. Here are four players contributing to this hot mess we have on our hands:
1) Sidney Crosby: Watching him live was deflating. His decision making is worse than it looks on television. He takes big loops away from the puck instead of stopping/starting. He doesn't look engaged at all. On the PK he tried to high stick the puck out of the air instead of just batting it with his hand. His passes are garbage and seriously it's so disappointing to watch him play. In fact, a lot of the bad passes you see on tv are worse live. There isn't a Penguin player anywhere in the area. Sid is just guessing because he doesn't want to take the puck to a corner (or to the net) and go to work. It's very sad.
2) Chris Kunitz: Complete mess. Plays as if he's pissed off that the he even has to dress to collect a paycheck.
3) Sutter: Surprisingly Sutter looks worse live, too. His defensive responsibility is overrated. He goes into the boards weaker than Pesonen, Beau, Miro Satan, and Sykora combined. For a guy who is given credit for his hustle he just doesn't. He plays Craig Adams hockey. He's going to be safe and stand around in the defensive side of the ice because he can't make a mistake if he's already standing there. As soon as he goes into a corner we all know the outcome. The puck is going the other way.
4) Evgeni Malkin: Weirdly the guy is buying into the system more than most, but he also looks like he's trying to push too hard to be the savior. Every shift he's looking to be the hero instead of just playing the right way. That's why Geno's line either looks the best or the worst shift-to-shift. You can feel his energy wanting to take over the game but he's pushing entirely too hard. He's desperately trying to score a goal each shift and that just isn't the way to play the game. You just have to focus on each shift doing what you CAN do. You aren't going to score a goal every shift. It just isn't going to happen. He's really forcing the play . On television I thought he was being lazy like the 3 above him, but that's actually not the case. Very shocking.
It's not human. 
