But Tippett isn't the one on the ice doing what he is preaching.
The term "Bigger, Faster, Stronger" is a mantra that has always been used around athletes, but it is not just the physical side of the game. This applies to the mental side as well. You have to be able to put mistakes behind you and make decisions at a much faster and more calculated rate. That is the precise reason why I thought the 2nd half of the season was going to be a big turn around from the first half. Everyone gets a little more understanding of what is going on and what they need to do - day by day, game by game, shift by shift.
Early on, the youth was playing, but maybe not making decisions at a fast enough pace or a high enough quality. That adjusts with time and getting comfortable with processing information correctly and then executing correctly. That's where Dvorak was early on in the season. There were some minor holes that needed correcting and he has shown that he has picked that up. It's not just in games, but probably also took place in practice. Tippett has talked about both Crouse and Chychrun with the same sentiments. Players like Duclair and DeAngelo struggled with mental and physical miscues this year. Perlini improved his mental and physical acuity against top AHL lines and it has carried over against similar quality of competition in the NHL. Consistent ice time is given to players who consistently perform.
Not much more to say except that if the expectation was for the youth to immediately jump right in and perform at a high level, maybe expectations need to be tempered within, and not needlessly placing blame on unrealistic expectations for a coach and team.
My expectations are going to jump considerably heading into next year, though. That is a reasonable timeframe to think that the pieces are going to come together.
Man I like reading your posts. You always make so much sense.
And Vrbata is washed up. Smith shouldn't have got the start (was named NHL networks first star of the entire night - all players all teams). Dvorak shouldn't see pk time (named second star of entire night).
