This is just MY opinion. Hockey is a very very fast sport. You simply can’t think too much about what you are going to do, a spit second will change your effectiveness drastically. Laine was supremely confident in his ability during years one and two, he didn’t take a second to think about what he was being asked to do, he just did what he knew he could.Watching a 'Laine's first 100 goals' video last night really made me pine for the old Laine. He really seemed to move up the ice so much faster and with purpose. His hands/ stickhandling seemed so much more slick, and he really used them well to get into scoring position or to to get the puck in a better spot to rip a shot.
His shot was so lethally accurate and his release was elite. We see a lot that people complained that he's not getting the puck in scoring position as much (passes to him not as good) but when you watch where he scored from, it was everywhere. He was 1T from near the blue line, in that spot in the circle, scoring from the opposite side, getting to the net and tipping it or just getting it in the slot and ripping it.
He is not nearly as effective or confident attacking with the puck at speed, beating defenders, and his shot has lost a lot of velocity and accuracy. I really hope he can get some of that back.
Once you ask someone to go against their nature, those precious milliseconds are past and your advantage is gone. There were times in those first two years where we didn’t even understand some of the incredible stick work he performed until you saw it in super slow motion. I can’t even comprehend how he was able to process the game that quickly but I do understand how you wouldn’t be able to do that if you are thinking about something else.
Im not, in any way saying that he didn’t have to get better at other portions of the game, but that came at a cost. Hopefully he has learned enough two way play to get his confidence back regarding his old offense style.
I’m looking for a huge year from him.