Is Swiss development now ahead of some of the "big 7"?

[MBTendy]

I'm walking on thin ice when talking goalies because this is the most unpredictible position in hockey in my eyes. Goalies sometimes come out of nowhere and are from one day to the other in the NHL-spotlight. Who did predict before the season what did happen to James Reimer and Kevin Poulin, maybe very soon Cédric Desjardins will join these two surprises? Jonas Hiller was not even a Swiss junior-national-team goalie as a junior and today... one of the hottest NHL-goalies at this point of the season.

Coming back to Swiss goalie-prediction: Yes, I think that Genoni and Conz have a chance to become NHL-goalies but this is not a bold prediction because there are dozens of goalies not playing in the NHL who have this theoretical chance. Genoni and Conz are both so called match-goalies. If you divide them into single pieces the result wouldn't be very good. Genoni is not the biggest, looks sometimes awful in practice, goes down sometimes too early and is vulnerable in the top-corners if the shooter decides to slow-down his shot for a split-second. Conz is also small and he is not an athlete and stylewise doesn't look the smoothest at all. But....they stop the puck! Both are excellent match-goalies! Potential-wise Genevas Tobias Stephan is the best young Swiss goalie and second-best is Reto Berra. Stephan is big, has excellent smooth and silky movements, technically very sound - the same goes for a lesser extent for Reto Berra - but Stephan and Berra are not yet as good match-goalies as Conz and especially Genoni is. The learning-curve of Stephan and Berra looks slower than the ones of Conz and Genoni but still...if Stephan and Berra would be able to become mentally tougher, more confident and if they improve - what is stilll possible - in the "reading the game-category", I guarantee you that Stephan and Berra will be the best Swiss goalies very soon (except Hiller). The question is: Will they take this next step??? Genoni and Conz already play on a high-level in terms of reading the game and in terms of being mentally tough in clutch-situations and according games. So, what will be the future? I'll be honest and tell: I don't know... I just know that on the goaltending-position there are a lot of potential-NHL-goalies playing in different leagues and whether they will make it depends on a lot of things, it also depends more than in every other hockey-position on being lucky to be the right guy in the right team at the right time.

Thomas / Pokechecker

Thanks!! I enjoyed reading that, very interesting. Mainly because Stephan and Conz were in it

 

[Rafik Soliman]

God I love this thread....

Also a big factor that hasn't been mentioned before is the coach-factor...

So far the Swiss had Ralph Krueger for like a decade as their head coach and Krueger was known as a defense-first minded coach which didn't gave the talented player enough room to play their individual game... That way we created a stereo-typical type of player who was strong on defense, but wasn't able to create much offensivly. Jakob "kobi" Kolliker selected the same way as the u20-Team is meant to be a preperation for the Seniore National Team. That way Players like Damien Brunner, Luca i and others (includes Inti Pestoni who was close making the u20-Team last year) who were known in the Juniors as one-dimentional didn't have a chance and that fore are coming now into the spotlights....

With that era now over and Sean Simpson his new successor, I see a chance for talents like Sven Bärtschi or up-and-coming talents like Kevin Fiala or Luca Fazzini (just to name a couple) get more chances to showcase themselfs, since Sean Simpson and Richard Jost play a more open, more puck-controll system...

I really think, that Krueger and Kolliker were a great tandem to start the rebuild, but were left in that position way to long and that way swiss ice hockey wasn't able to develope more....

 

[duga]

God I love this thread....

Also a big factor that hasn't been mentioned before is the coach-factor...

So far the Swiss had Ralph Krueger for like a decade as their head coach and Krueger was known as a defense-first minded coach which didn't gave the talented player enough room to play their individual game... That way we created a stereo-typical type of player who was strong on defense, but wasn't able to create much offensivly. Jakob "kobi" Kolliker selected the same way as the u20-Team is meant to be a preperation for the Seniore National Team. That way Players like Damien Brunner, Luca i and others (includes Inti Pestoni who was close making the u20-Team last year) who were known in the Juniors as one-dimentional didn't have a chance and that fore are coming now into the spotlights....

With that era now over and Sean Simpson his new successor, I see a chance for talents like Sven Bärtschi or up-and-coming talents like Kevin Fiala or Luca Fazzini (just to name a couple) get more chances to showcase themselfs, since Sean Simpson and Richard Jost play a more open, more puck-controll system...

I really think, that Krueger and Kolliker were a great tandem to start the rebuild, but were left in that position way to long and that way swiss ice hockey wasn't able to develope more....

spot on...

especially the last paragraph.


K&K: they brought: teamspirit, defense and that there's a chance if you work harder. I hope that achievements will last. Mentally, it means: We don't wanna lose.

Simpson and Jost: building on K and K's work they bring: creativity, believe in their own hockey skills, but everything well timed. working and playing hard. We want to win.
It will be interesting to see how they can recover after disappointments. cause it's harder to lose with this mental attidute.


But on Junior-Level, it was about time for the change! Finally, they don't shy away from skilled players... just because they are skilled players. I don't want to see any more very typical swiss attitude of even out every player. it's like in school, when I was there. you have to be an all-rounder for very long time. Clear out your weaknesses, before you are allowed to show your strenghts. stop that please!
I definitely think the fear of failure finally grew on the old coaching staff and they lost any sense for risk and creativity in the end.

BTW, the hockey, the ZSC Lions were playing in the CHampions League and against the Blackhawks under Simpson was the best hockey any swiss team ever played IMO. They forechecked any opponent out of their skates, were very smart when gaining puck possession, playing patient and going hard to the net. Then closed the door defensively a la Krueger, let the opponent cycle in the perimeter, when stealing the puck, everybody went in the breakaway. They had a few highlight-reel 4-1,3-1 or 3-0 breakaways.
Outclassing better opponents on a regular base on sheer tactical domination. When Simpson can install sth similar in National Team....