Roy is bad but the players don't really show any will to win, Landeskog being the captain is a question mark too. When comparing the Avs core players to let's say the Hawks, not only Hawks have better talent but their top guys have a lot of heart and leadership and actually want to win unlike the Avs top guys.
How do you measure "Will to win"?
Did Crosby lack a will to win under Johnston?
Do you really think that proven winners like MacKinnon or Duchene or the guy that was annointed to be the next Toews leadership wise at the age of 17 in Landeskog really lack the will to win or heart?
Sorry but that is just an annoying hockey stereotype that is mostly ********.
Those guys are professionals. Aside from a few bad eggs all of those guys are desperate to win. Otherwise they wouldn't have made it into the league.
Those cliches do nothing but cloud the real issues.
The Avs issues are that they have to rely on their very young players because (aside from Beauch and Soda) they have no one else doing much on this team that is older than 27. We have done such a poor job at rebuilding (if you even want to call what we did rebuilding) that we are one of the few teams that have real depth issues.
We also clearly have system/coaching issues (those possession stats for example are just not justifiable) and our defense has been a problem for a decade+ now.
Our franchise player is 20. Our captain 23.
Can we maybe wait another 2-3 years before we give up on them?
Look at ROR. Is he so much better than Landeskog, Mac or Duchene?
He is seen as a franchise caliber player on a bad team right now. Everyone is amazed how good he is. He even said that he did not get the opportunities with the Avs.
And I loved the guy but he was maybe on the same level but not really superior to the others.
So do you want to see another one of our young stud blossoming somewhere else just because the Avs were too stupid to put them into a position they could succeed in or what is your plan?
This organisation was in a terrible state talentwise after Sakic retired. We never really committed to a rebuild but we somehow still found a way to scrap together a very decent core.
Why the hell do we want to tear all of this down right now just because they are playing atrocious? Because our young players are at fault for the terrible rebuilding job our management has done?
Atleast give them another 2-3 years (without any stupid "go for it" -moves like Stuart/Berra or Iginla) and another coach (not a rookie coach for once please. Look at the impact of Hitchcock, Sutter, Trotz, Boudreau, Ruff or Babcock on teams who had similar problems than us).
/End rant