Thoughts:
-Sloppy game all around, but lucky to come away with 2 points against a non-playoff team. Tarasenko was clearly their best player tonight not if by points but by his willingness to shoot which led directly to 2 goals.
-Breakouts. Awful. There need to be benchings for every time a player just haphazardly swats the puck in the general 180 degree cone of the opposing net with no regard for where it's going and it ends up on an opponent's stick, regardless of if this occurs in the defensive zone or the neutral zone. If they end up outnumbered at the blueline, they need to dump far corner with the opposite winger entering with a full head of steam. It's a timing play, but it's the only way you're going to consistently beat the D to the puck. You're not going to get there if everyone is standing flat footed at the offensive blueline waiting for the dump. If they're going to carry in, they need to try to approach with speed to back the D off. If they're not, they need to overload a side and attack in numbers, and carry in to the half wall to create separation up high so they can effectively use the point. A slow entry where they only go 5-10 feet into the offensive zone doesn't create enough separation to consistently make the D a viable option to spread the play without risking an odd man rush the other way, a turnover, or a forced no look cross corner dump in from the point with likely no one to retrieve the puck.
-There is still a lack of coordination among the offense. Pointed out to my wife during the game - not sure who the player was, but at one point, Panarin passes to someone in the high slot then backs of towards the left circle stick raised, in clear anticipation for the second half of a give and go, and a one-timer on net - and the puck carrier...passes to Ben Harpur. Plays like this kill scoring opportunities.
-Kid line was buzzing, and Laf's passing wa on point tonight, but they didn't finish. Chytil needs to start roofing pucks and stop going low corner all the time. Kakko needs to more consistently shoot off the pass when receiving a cross ice pass, or if he's going to wait, aim far side back where the goalie came from. The body of their game was good, but the points weren't there tonight.
-Of all the reasons to be glad for Patty Kane's arrival, not the least of which will be no more Barclay Goodrow on Panarin's opposite wing. Woof.
-Fox still looks like he's playing hurt to me. While speed was never really his thing, his first step explosiveness has not been there and it's made him less evasive along the blueline and in isolating defenders to create oddman situations down low. IMO that's the biggest reason his offense seems to have stagnated.
-Igor is still setting up with one pad down at times, and it's killing him. Stay on your feet dude. Laughton doesn't score that goal if Igor's positioning is right.
-Offensively, this team is not drawing enough penalties right now, and that's a byproduct of not consistently challenging scoring areas. This looked like it was going to be a runaway victory until they started taking penalties in the first, then it took them a period and a half to find their legs again. That won't cut it against stronger teams.
-Despite the increased minutes, the D really wasn't my biggest issue today - far from it. Hopefully they have enough in the tank for a strong game tomorrow, and not to beat a dead horse on breakouts, but the forwards have to do a better job with puck management especially in the neutral zone and D zone exits.
