So is it fair to say that this team has enough talent to finish higher in the standings? And if it is then where does the flame fall? Like every great organization, team, group that responsibility lies with leadership. And in the case of a team, that leadership of the players rests entirely on the coaching staff. It amazes me that this team is arguably one of the top 2 penalty killing teams in the league, yet is one of the two worst power-play teams in the league. And, how they can come out and play like they did on Saturday, yet turn around and not show up for a game days later or days in the past. That is all about leadership. Leading the team during the game, leading the team during practices, expecting players to be more consistent and accountable in their play. And having I means to reprimand, when they don’t. Case in point, I think Swankler had a great weekend. Four goals, aggressive play, no penalty trouble. Maybe it had something to do with the fact that he was introduced to different line mates. Some players seem to be untouchable when it comes to this kind of action.
Given our talent, many people predicted the Otters to fall somewhere between 4 and 7 seed.
GM - overall I would give Brown a B rating, maybe a C if you consider his missed import pick and questionable trade history. He has made some suspect trades, but we have the talent to succeed in the middle of the charts, he is adequately doing his job, but I wouldn't call it excelling.
Coaching - D. The kids are still having lines shuffled, the PP is abysmal, there is no discipline and I honestly believe at this point, the players lost all faith in the coaching. It is the coaches job with the players they have to create cohesiveness, motivate, and grow these kids into the next level. I feel that is severely lacking because the talent IS there and almost nothing has come together consistently.
Players - while there has been one relatively consistent line (Hoffman, Sellan, D'Amato), the OT/SO losses do fall more on the players than coaching IMO. That being said, the kids are still progressing and we have seen a lot of growth this year out of Swankler, Lockhart, Sellan, Campbell, Morton, and some of the other younger kids. Outside of the OA situation building for next year, we still have that SOLID core. They just aren't "clicking" as a team consistently to move up the ranks.
Things out of our control:
The schedule was quite brutal with the 3's
The injuries have hurt us early and now late.
Not to say they are excuses, but they do factor into the equation.
