No one is under the impression that this is a playoff team. However, this team should not be a multiple 10 game losing streak team. This is not a team that should have a -90 goal differential halfway through the season.
The Sharks are a prime example of the "our expectations were low but holy f***" meme.
The funny thing is you keep saying Quinn wants effort, but then that he doesn't care about individual players he knows aren't going to be there. So does he want effort or not? You can't send a message to some whilst they see others not held to the same standard. The only message there is "if I hang around long enough, the same accountability isn't there".
What I would like to see:
- PK changes - personnel or structure (both would be better)
- DZ system changes
- Kunin 4th line or scratch. He shouldn't be any higher.
- Duclair/Hoffman scratched if there isn't improvement. Guschin brought up in their place to reward performance.
- Eklund not benched or demoted for a sole mistake.
- Ferraro scratched.
- Labanc given an opportunity with skilled players instead of 4th line dump and chase merchants.
Oh I think this is a multiple 10-game losing streak team. My expectation remains between 10 and 15 wins on the season.
This is a team whose defensive corps is just awful. Abysmal. Ludicrously bad. Our best puck mover is Matt ******* Benning, who wouldn't start on a single playoff-capable team and who is now injured. The rest of the corps is incapable of reliably getting the puck out of the zone when under even the slightest amount of pressure - every single one of them. They're not good at keeping the opposing team out of the zone, they're terrible in the zone, they are abysmal at holding the offensive blue line, abysmal at passing the puck, all wimpy shots, no creativity, no vision, etc.
They're just collectively awful in every way - even the young guys who may have promise (Thrun and Okhotiuk and Emberson) belong in the AHL right now and are likely never going to be better than bottom pair/7D guys at their peaks.
The forwards aren't really any better. Hertl is good but not that good. Couture is a passenger - a very skilled passenger, but he needs linemates to create offense for him, and now he's missed half the season and there's no guarantee he's even playable when he comes back. Eklund is going to be a good player, but he's not that good yet. Zetterlund is a skilled goal scorer, but he shouldn't be a top six go-to guy.
Other than them? I guess Granlund is ok, had a great November but has been pretty bad otherwise. Hoffman is done and everyone should have known that. Duclair is barely passable - maybe he's just sad or maybe his injury has sapped his skills. Kunin belongs in the AHL. Sturm is an average 4C playing above his skill level (and now hurt). Barabanov has been excellent until this year but got hurt and now isn't doing much. Labanc is not an NHL player anymore - he does nothing special at all. Zadina belongs in Europe - we'd be better off with Dahlen back. Carpenter, Bailey, Smith - these guys have no business on an NHL roster at all.
Again - half our forward group doesn't belong in this league at all, and half the rest are bottom six filler.
Our goaltenders aren't actually anything special, either.
Of our roster, a majority just outright do not belong in this league. Most of the rest are playing a line or two above their skill level.
What kind of expectations should we have for a team of this level? Of course they're getting blown out. Of course they're losing more than three-quarters of their games.
