To each his own ... I have had a bunch of old school coaches through minor hockey, junior and minor pro so I have been taught sure fire let's not get scored on defensive principles ... if you own your end and allow no goals against then your team generally wins games ... when you play on da fly and anticipate everything da puck is bound to wind up in your net which is what happened in this case ... it is also why most businesses fail too ... they are too loose ... goalers and dmen have to play tight and control puck in their own end ... forwards can take risks to try to score ... i am new to soccer past few years as a spectator but even in your sport most to elite coaches want to control game and position in their own end with a big and solid backline with speed ... every team needs creative midfielders to make anticipation passes too but you only need 1 or 2 of those guys ... other 2 guys better play rock solid defense ... da reason our Leafs are better this year is really simple OUR defenders this year are best we have had since 1993 ... not much has changed up front or in net ... but with Brodie, Muzzy and Bogo we got 3 guys who understand defense and have necessary experience to have seen it all which they are sharing with our Rielly's and Holl's and Dermy's ... that is how it really works
That's not the case, football, like hockey is now demanding ALL players to be able to do ALL facets of the game. In football now, right-backs can play as centre-mids. Heck, goalkeepers can pass the ball like centre-mids nowadays.
Arsenal's 'invincible' side are the best team i've ever seen play. Their centre-backs constantly passed the ball 10 metres ahead of the full-back, for them to run onto it and drive forwards. It was risky, because if intercepted, they'd be caught on the break. But they'd constantly play those passes without even looking, because the full-back SHOULD have been ready and anticipating the play.
That's what Dermott should have done. If you always react, you are behind the 8-ball. You need to be pro-active and depend on your teammates to make the right moves and act accordingly. The game moves so fast, you simply have to. That's why these guys are so elite. Occasionally, one person isn't where they should be and it costs. But the principle of it shouldn't alter because of that for me.
I want to see people make plays based on where their teammates should be and anticipating what they should be doing. Not waiting for it to happen then acting depending on it. They all need to be on the same page, else the fluidity isn't there.
I think hockey, like football, is trending in that direction.