Toggle sidebar

Malkin's shot

KIRK

Registered User
Aug 2, 2005
109,700
51,216
Tender Rip said:
This IS a worry. I have one positive, sort of, spin on it though.... But it might be 'too easy'. While getting chances for the one timer is of course very much down to moving into position for them, can anyone even recall a recent PP where Malkin received a good feed for it and didn't try? It seems very much like teams are focused on taking that away, staying high on him, when he is in THAT spot and otherwise he is moving around as the units playmaker. Anyway, I really miss that bomb also!
Click to expand...

You mean a pass like the one he gave Nisky? No, Malkin is the only one on the team apparently capable of making that pass on the PP.

Gonchar really was the master at it, because it takes three components: The perfect place, the perfect placement, and completely untelegraphed.

So, no, nobody makes a pass like that to Malkin, and I think Malkin really is reticent to take that one timer (or a shot) if it's got no chance of getting through.

That said, I wouldn't be surprised if there's going to be a lingering issue with the shoulder.

While it's 'Rossi', I do remember late last year his talking about Malkin's shoulder and perhaps needing surgery. Anyone hear anything about surgery? So, figure it 'self' healed. Maybe it's just one of those things that's never going to be 100% all the time.

Well get a better idea when Neal returns.
 
Honour Over Glory

Honour Over Glory

Fire Sully
Jan 30, 2012
77,316
42,447
Sideline said:
Lack of Gonchar dishing him sweet saucer passes. Letang's handcuffing setups killed Geno's one-timer
Click to expand...

I'd keep Martin with Geno, for that purpose. Letang is a frustrating player to watch, he has so much talent, but he has so many issues breaking past his mental blocks for shooting and improving aspects of his game like his shot, passing, etc. He can rush up the ice like no one else in the league and deke through them like a skilled forward, he shoots well on the go, but the moment he has to think instead of react...game over.

Malkin's shot is as potent as ever, but people know about this and so they try to crowd him when he gets the puck and it looks like he is about to tee it up. He needs a good dish man for the one timer, Sid is good but most of the time, they're on the same side with Geno moving back and forth from the point, slot and the high right boards.
 

KIRK

Registered User
Aug 2, 2005
109,700
51,216
Honour Over Glory said:
I'd keep Martin with Geno, for that purpose. Letang is a frustrating player to watch, he has so much talent, but he has so many issues breaking past his mental blocks for shooting and improving aspects of his game like his shot, passing, etc. He can rush up the ice like no one else in the league and deke through them like a skilled forward, he shoots well on the go, but the moment he has to think instead of react...game over.

Malkin's shot is as potent as ever, but people know about this and so they try to crowd him when he gets the puck and it looks like he is about to tee it up. He needs a good dish man for the one timer, Sid is good but most of the time, they're on the same side with Geno moving back and forth from the point, slot and the high right boards.
Click to expand...

The thing is that the Pens don't even have the right guy for the point. Martin can make the pass precisely, at the right pace, and even disguise it. BUT, nobody fears him shooting from the point, meaning you can cheat towards Malkin.

That's what made Gonchar and Geno work so well. Gonchar would have his head up, looking at the net, looking for a shooting lane. You HAD to respect his shot. Then, the moment it looked like he was ready to shoot, he'd slide a perfect no look pass for a one timer to Geno who would wire the shot.

The other part that made the equation work was Sid. I know it sounds nuts, but Sid was an important component. With Geno on the right wall, Sid would play near the right goal line and set a decent screen.

Now, Geno's got nobody setting a screen and, in the rare event that he actually gets a perfectly paced/placed pass for a one timer, it's a telegraphed pass, so the goalie already is sliding and has nobody blocking his view.

Personally, to the degree that this explains part of the issue with his not shooting so much on the PP (and I think it's a legit explanation), I don't think it gets solved until/unless you've got Despres OR Pouliot at that point. Nobody else can make the pass and present the threat as a shooter.

A guy who knows how to work the front of the net and slide will the play obviously would be an added bonus, but IMO the best two forwards on the Pens at moving with the flow of the play to set a perfectly timed screen are Sid and Bennett. I suspect Kobasew would be in that ballpark too.
 

Pancakes

HFBoards Sponsor
Sponsor
Mar 4, 2011
26,293
18,211
Our powerplay is running at 35% and third in the league, so I guess I'm not too worried as it stands.

I haven't really noticed him getting a lot of opportunities to even take that one-timer because teams are overplaying his side a lot. It's not hurting us though because other plays are being opened up as a result such as Niskanen's one-timer goal vs Tampa. Overplay Sid and Geno and you're going to pay eventually as Sid and Geno are usually good about adjusting to that and finding the open man in those situations.

And our PP is only going to get deadlier when Neal comes back as teams tend to forget about him and his shot is even more lethal than Geno's.
 

KIRK

Registered User
Aug 2, 2005
109,700
51,216
Pancakes said:
Our powerplay is running at 35% and third in the league, so I guess I'm not too worried as it stands.

I haven't really noticed him getting a lot of opportunities to even take that one-timer because teams are overplaying his side a lot. It's not hurting us though because other plays are being opened up as a result such as Niskanen's one-timer goal vs Tampa. Overplay Sid and Geno and you're going to pay eventually as Sid and Geno are usually good about adjusting to that and finding the open man in those situations.

And our PP is only going to get deadlier when Neal comes back as teams tend to forget about him and his shot is even more lethal than Geno's.
Click to expand...

Neal should be on the right wall (whether he will or won't is a different issue, but Geno and Neal COULD work like Gonch and Geno did, as I described above), and it will help. Just two things:

1. Unrelated to Malkin specifically, the lack of puck support and movement are issues against top end PK units. Now, during the regular season, it's not as big a problem 'statistically', because on balance you play enough lesser PK's that the talent converts. Put another way, the PP succeeds in spite of the lack of structure not because of how it is organized.

2. Niskanen's one timer happened because the Bolts PK screwed up and gave Geno that passing lane. Until then, his one time chances were coming off passes from the center point, which was much easier for the PK guys to follow to block and the goalie to slide over.
 
pensfan71

pensfan71

Registered User
Jun 9, 2010
15,724
1,601
Maybe he's a victim of that Derrick Rose mentality...

AKA: the fear of aggravating injuries, mind over matter
 
useless

useless

Registered User
Feb 2, 2011
2,553
24
Sorry to derail a little bit.

Where can I run a query to find Malkin's FO% in the offensive zone for the FO% in the defensive zone?
 
NastyNick

NastyNick

Registered User
Sep 7, 2007
3,832
178
Pittsburgh
Part - multiple shoulder injuries. I noticed last year after returning from missing a few games with a bum shoulder that he was not shooting slappers at all. Must have hurt a lot to fire em.

Part - confidence. Geno has said it himself that he looks for Neal because he thinks Neal has a much better shot.

The truth is that Geno is just as effective as Neal as a goal scorer (probably moreso considering hes hit 50 and Neal hasn't). But who knows what goes on in that brain of Genos
 

KIRK

Registered User
Aug 2, 2005
109,700
51,216
NastyNick said:
Part - multiple shoulder injuries. I noticed last year after returning from missing a few games with a bum shoulder that he was not shooting slappers at all. Must have hurt a lot to fire em.

Part - confidence. Geno has said it himself that he looks for Neal because he thinks Neal has a much better shot.

The truth is that Geno is just as effective as Neal as a goal scorer (probably moreso considering hes hit 50 and Neal hasn't). But who knows what goes on in that brain of Genos
Click to expand...

Respectfully, you're missing a part. The other part of the equation is that the one time pass must (a) be perfect in its placement, (b) be perfect in its pace, and (c) NOT be telegraphed. Look at the replay above. Gonchar is looking at the net, like he's considering shooting. Because Gonchar COULD shoot well, the PK HAD to respect that. He barely looked when he sent the one time pass. It froze the goalie and extra second and prevented the PK from sliding into position to block the shot. Right now, the Pens have NOBODY with the shot and ability to make the one time pass to play the point, thereby allowing teams to cheat to Malkin. Even today's one time goal was proof. Martin partially fanned on his one time pass. The PK and goalie had committed so much that, by the time the puck got to Malkin, they'd overcommitted.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

Ad

Latest posts

Upcoming events

Ad

Ad

Top Bottom