Recalled/Assigned: Rau, Brickley, Hunt & Weegar sent down, Pardy released from PTO

[batting1k]

I loved the Mack signing, ad I still like him as a player. However, he has been utilized terribly on Florida. He gets 5 more es minutes a night than he did on CBJ. He plays too much.

How often has MacKenzie started in other teams zones, especially after icings? I don't get why he gets shifts there. He needs to be at the 8 or 9 minute mark, not 15.

Maybe because he's been one of our best faceoff men since he's been here...he was at 54.8 percent last season...Bjugstad was at 51 percent, Trocheck at 49.5 and Barkov at 49.2. Not sure what there is to be unsure about there...

He's been over 53 percent in the defensive zone alone the past two seasons...that's pretty good if you ask me.

 

[SoupyFIN]

This is not me though if you are hinting at that notion. Mac work ethic screams through the TV AND watching him live in person (that's not the case for many guys).

Why is bashing of him happening since near end of last season ? I COULD see slippage in his game like I do for sure w/Jussi, but it has not happened yet but many < here are treating it like fact. Fact : Campbell had bad playoff series, Jagr struggled , Lu was good other than odd moment/period here or there, Mac did not regress end of last year. Facts.

It's not bashing, it's stating facts about a player that hasn't really changed in the 2 years that he's been a Panther. Many posters here have touted Mac as a great 4C, some have even gone as far as saying that he's one of the best (4C's) in the league. I like Mac as much as anyone around here, but I've said since his first year that yeah it's great that he plays with that energy night in night out, but at the same time that over agressive style takes him out of the play too often that he ends up hurting the team more than contributing.

 

[Gentle Man]

Maybe because he's been one of our best faceoff men since he's been here...he was at 54.8 percent last season...Bjugstad was at 51 percent, Trocheck at 49.5 and Barkov at 49.2. Not sure what there is to be unsure about there...

He's been over 53 percent in the defensive zone alone the past two seasons...that's pretty good if you ask me.

Thats good and all, but at best, he should take the draw then switch out. Something Dineen did a lot of.

Remember Smithson taking the draw for the powerplay then swapping out with Garrison?

DMac can take all the draws he wants in the offensive zone, but he should skate hard to the bench right after. Hell, they should do this for the powerplays even. Take the draw then swap out with the point-man.

What good is winning the faceoffs in the offensive zone after an icing when the other team will waltz right out of there?

 

[Brokin]

Maybe because he's been one of our best faceoff men since he's been here...he was at 54.8 percent last season...Bjugstad was at 51 percent, Trocheck at 49.5 and Barkov at 49.2. Not sure what there is to be unsure about there...

He's been over 53 percent in the defensive zone alone the past two seasons...that's pretty good if you ask me.

Mac is what he is. Like you said he's great in the FO circle and brings speed, energy and hits to get the team going. He played some on the 3rd line last year and he was terrible as he cannot distribute and gets too deep in the offensive zone leading to odd-man rushes. He plays the PK just fine because he is able to quickly get to the points to prevent shots and has non stop energy. With him at C the 4th line will always have trouble scoring but will be fine as a checking line as his wingers will cover for him when he gets too deep on the forecheck.

Let's face it, we need a little sandpaper in the lineup as most of the guys don't play a physical game. I think Gallant really values what he brings to the team.

 

[ucanthanzalthetruth]

Maybe because he's been one of our best faceoff men since he's been here...he was at 54.8 percent last season...Bjugstad was at 51 percent, Trocheck at 49.5 and Barkov at 49.2. Not sure what there is to be unsure about there...

He's been over 53 percent in the defensive zone alone the past two seasons...that's pretty good if you ask me.

He doesn't take faceoffs and leave the ice in the offensive zone.

That was Smithson. I never spoke negatively about his defensive faceoff ability.

12-14 mins I say. Gallant loves to roll lines. Mac needs better linemmates than say Shaw/Wilson/Thornton etc. It's not Macs fault. I think the organization this offseason is at that point now. I'd put Hawryluk on that line for his first 20-40 NHL games when healthy, or Jussi by end of the year. That's how you build winning squad. Howden was 3Rd/4th line LW of future but that fizzled out unexpectedly (health reasons/hockey IQ/finishing abilities/Gallant doghouse theory).

He had really good teammates (for what they were) 2 years ago and put up similar numbers, so I don't agree.

edit: I can't remember if he played with Kopecky a lot. If he did, ignore the really good teammate part. I mostly remember Boyes, Flash and Bergenheim there, but it could be a coping mechanism from the trauma of watching Kopecky those last 2 years.

 

[batting1k]

He doesn't take faceoffs and leave the ice in the offensive zone.

That was Smithson. I never spoke negatively about his defensive faceoff ability.

I don't agree with this. Remember, there's 4 other players (aside from the goalie) on the ice at the same time as Mackenzie when he's taking a faceoff. It shouldn't be up to MacKenzie to win the faceoff and then keep the puck completely out of there for the entirety of every shift he plays.

Not sure if this link will bring you to exactly what I want to show you, but MacKenzie is 7th in the league in DZ AdjNetS/FO, meaning there are general more shots on the opposing team's net in the 10 seconds after a D-zone faceoff win than other faceoff takers in the league. Trocheck is actually 1st in this same category. Granted, the other players have taken more d-zone faceoffs than the other players on the list, but the trend is positive and the sample size isn't bad.

http://puckbase.com/stats/post-faceoff-possession?zone=def&sort=def_zone_nspf_fo&sort_order=desc

 

[ucanthanzalthetruth]

Am I missing something here? Why do you keep talking about the defensive zone?

The link you have given me is to defensive zone stats as well...

I'm not making this about advanced stats, bcause they make Mack seem worse than he is. But shouldn't it be logically assumed that your worst offensive player should be given the least opportunity in offensive zones?

 

[batting1k]

Fine. Offensive zone...similar positioning on the chart. What's your point?

 

[CanadianPantherFan]

He doesn't take faceoffs and leave the ice in the offensive zone.

That was Smithson. I never spoke negatively about his defensive faceoff ability.




He had really good teammates (for what they were) 2 years ago and put up similar numbers, so I don't agree.

edit: I can't remember if he played with Kopecky a lot. If he did, ignore the really good teammate part. I mostly remember Boyes, Flash and Bergenheim there, but it could be a coping mechanism from the trauma of watching Kopecky those last 2 years.

Boyes and Bergie were the Killer Bs with Barkov. I remember epic open net feeds via Barkov missed by Boyes and snakbitten Bergie who had better chemistry with Barky than Jussi does. Flash was yo yo that year I believe the dude was mental head case played on every line after playoff year.