Ruff has to go

[usekakkorightquinn]

Time to bring Kris Knoblauch up and let him control the entire defense of the team. As well as start him off on his way to getting used to the NHL to replace Quinn. I have seen no improvement in the team defense under Ruff and Quinn. Quinn's handling of Andersson last night was an embarrassment to the organization. Kakko is out and you put a career loser in McKegg on the third line. Unacceptable. How many years of watching the PK unit not cover the points and be totally incompetent do the fans have to watch before a change is made. You simply can't win in this league and make the playoffs with the PK unit the way it is and the team defense 36.5 shots per game. Every team can have a game like last night but the team defense here has been a joke under Quinn and Ruff since they began. You can't keep playing the young defenseman card.

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[Gospel of Prospal]

Or let Quinn run the D, but yes, Ruff needs to go ASAP

 

[usekakkorightquinn]

I watched Howden close last night. He is atrocious at the moment. He has no clue how to kill a penalty. Kucherov has the puck 20 feet in the high slot and he stands there not pressuring him. Mickey Mouse crap. He is easily knocked off the puck in the corners. Right now he shouldn't even be in the NHL and if he is it's 4th line at best. JD needs to step in a do something. Either Quinn starts giving Andersson real time and linemmates or the coach needs to be removed. Fast playing as many minutes as he does is a joke. He's not a part of the future here. Smith even in the lineup is comical. It's one thing to have the average age of y0ur team be the youngest in the league. It's another to actually commit to a rebuild. When you play Fast more than Andersson. Smith more than Andersson. McKegg more than Andersson. You aren't rebuilding. What you are doing is making a lame attempt to build up trade value in vets and get more at the deadline at the expense of a young player. They started the season with the same nonsense playing Staal over Lindgren.

You have a kid in Lettieri that actually seems to be figuring it out the last 5 games of last season. What the heck is the point of playing a lousy, converted defenseman on the 4th line instead of Lettieri? Because the organization was stupid and gave him a big contract and he stunk? Lettieri can actually shoot the puck unlike most of the forwards on our second pp unit. He's a righty shot which is nice.

 

[Raspewtin]

The teams defense structure and on an individual level has seen absolutely no progress under Ruff.

I’m not even sure what to “credit” him for. Fox and Lindgren just got here while Hajek has gotten his head caved in all year and Skjei has taken multiple steps back from his rookie year. TDA is probably worse defensively than he was in ARZ (though he was never good), Pionk was a trash fire here and went to respectability as soon as he left the team. Shattenkirk looks excellent on Tampa and he hasn’t been doing much different than he was on NYR.

It’s not like he inherited a great defense but he didn’t inherit the worst in the NHL and they’ve been bottom 3 in all defensive metrics for going on three straight years under Ruff with an AWFUL penalty kill to boot. He has never, ever coached a good defensive system and i think where he is now is more of the same. Get rid of him.

 

[Inferno]

The teams defense structure and on an individual level has seen absolutely no progress under Ruff.

I’m not even sure what to “credit” him for. Fox and Lindgren just got here while Hajek has gotten his head caved in all year and Skjei has taken multiple steps back from his rookie year. TDA is probably worse defensively than he was in ARZ (though he was never good), Pionk was a trash fire here and went to respectability as soon as he left the team. Shattenkirk looks excellent on Tampa and he hasn’t been doing much different than he was on NYR.

It’s not like he inherited a great defense but he didn’t inherit the worst in the NHL and they’ve been bottom 3 in all defensive metrics for going on three straight years under Ruff with an AWFUL penalty kill to boot. He has never, ever coached a good defensive system and i think where he is now is more of the same. Get rid of him.

100% this.

 

[Gardner McKay]

If there was every a time to make changes, it is after a blow out loss. He needs to go.

 

[NYRFANMANI]

I'd be kinda fine with him sticking around this season, he facilitates the tank. Call up Knoblauch next year.

Only factor is, how detrimental is Ruff to the dev. of the kids? Is he ruining couple of years of development or just the time he's here?

It's not like he has access to the top D prospects anyhow. Staal, Smith and Skjei are here. Ride this season out, more changes in the off-season.

 

[Kupo]

Time to bring Kris Knoblauch up and let him control the entire defense of the team. As well as start him off on his way to getting used to the NHL to replace Quinn. I have seen no improvement in the team defense under Ruff and Quinn. Quinn's handling of Andersson last night was an embarrassment to the organization. Kakko is out and you put a career loser in McKegg on the third line. Unacceptable. How many years of watching the PK unit not cover the points and be totally incompetent do the fans have to watch before a change is made. You simply can't win in this league and make the playoffs with the PK unit the way it is and the team defense 36.5 shots per game. Every team can have a game like last night but the team defense here has been a joke under Quinn and Ruff since they began. You can't keep playing the young defenseman card.

I think a lot of competent coaches would look like they're mental midgets with the amount of youth we have on our blueline. Our vets are Trouba, who's new. Staal, who's Staal. And Skjei, who has the IQ of a baked potato.

Hajek, Lindgren, ADA and Fox will all have successful NHL careers, but there will be growing pains with them. Same applies to our young forwards too.

Having said this, I agree Ruff has to go. He may not the main problem, but I don't see him as part of the solution either.

 

[Mac n Gs]

If you want to evaluate him for the job that we know he's hired to do, run the PK, then it's an easy decision. The PK sucks again this year and does not exhibit any of the aggressive nature, like we saw against PIT, that was talked up all preseason. While it isn't as bad as it was in AV's last year, it's still fundamentally broken and needs a change.

 

[Raspewtin]

I think a lot of competent coaches would look like they're mental midgets with the amount of youth we have on our blueline. Our vets are Trouba, who's new. Staal, who's Staal. And Skjei, who has the IQ of a baked potato.

Hajek, Lindgren, ADA and Fox will all have successful NHL careers, but there will be growing pains with them. Same applies to our young forwards too.

Having said this, I agree Ruff has to go. He may not the main problem, but I don't see him as part of the solution either.

not really. I think most would acknowledge that young defensemen are gonna epicly collapse every now and then and have hilarious giveaways resulting from trying to make a play but this team is legitimately not NHL caliber in the defensive zone and the entire D core has the same bad habits that haven't improved one iota since Ruff has been here.

 

[Raspewtin]

I'm willing to cut coaches of super young teams slack if I see consistent and noticable improvement structurally, game fundamentals, and zeroing in on specific problem areas. Not a damn thing has improved with Ruff at the helm of the defense and you can make a convincing argument that it has gotten worse every year of his tenure while the personnel has improved.

 

[Gardner McKay]

I'd be kinda fine with him sticking around this season, he facilitates the tank. Call up Knoblauch next year.

Only factor is, how detrimental is Ruff to the dev. of the kids? Is he ruining couple of years of development or just the time he's here?

It's not like he has access to the top D prospects anyhow. Staal, Smith and Skjei are here. Ride this season out, more changes in the off-season.

Facilitating a tank does nothing if we are wasting an entire year of development for some of our young defensemen. Frankly, I'm not sure it would be worth it.

 

[NYRFANMANI]

Facilitating a tank does nothing if we are wasting an entire year of development for some of our young defensemen. Frankly, I'm not sure it would be worth it.

That's what I'm asking. I think the positives (long term) outweigh the negatives (short and long term).

Fox, Hajek and Lindgren are 21. It is a very important time in their development, but it's not the end by any means.

The question is, if Ruff's influence lingers on. If he's teaching bad habits that would be tough to get out of a player.

 

[Oscar Lindberg]

Ruff has pretty much never had a good defensive team





If they go on a terrible losing streak this season I could see him taking the fall, but hopefully he gets fired in the summer. I'd like to see what Greg Brown can do, it can't be worse than Ruff right now.

 

[Vitto79]

Ruff was more to help a rookie coach Quinn

time for a change .. is that Zubov?

 

[KirkAlbuquerque]

CALL UP THE KNOBSTER

 

[Inferno]

I think a guy like hitch would be a great coach strictly for defense.

 

[lemonybergamot]

I remember the Fire Sather! chants at the garden. Can we get a fire Ruff one going next time we are back in msg?

 

[CasusBelli]

Any good defensive coaches in Sweden? Trying to think outside the box. A lot of good defensemen have come from there, and there’s no language barrier, since Swedes are fluent English speakers.

 

[Carl Swaglin]

I was behind the bench last night. Never once saw him talking to players or really anyone for that matter. Just stands there like he’s going through the motions to collect a pay check.

 

[True Blue]

I'd be kinda fine with him sticking around this season, he facilitates the tank. Call up Knoblauch next year.

They finally got someone competent in Hartford. Considering the coming pipeline, let's just leave him be.

I would be open (not that my vote counts for anything) for someone like Hitch to be the assistant for the D purposes. Also, at some point (and I believe this is the reason for Ruff), Quinn is not going to need an experienced NHL coach to be on staff for him.

Unfortunately, I think that this is all for naught. Ruff is going nowhere this year. If there is a change (IF), that will not be until after the season.

 

[ReggieDunlop68]

Mike Milbury was more prudent and level-headed in his decision making while GM of the Islanders than most of our fans would be.

 

[usekakkorightquinn]

Here's the problem with leaving him in Hartford. There is no young talent down there right now. It's all up on the big team or somewhere else. There is nothing on the Pack other than Keane and Rykov who doesn't play. Look at that roster. It sucks other than the goalies and he's not going to make them better. BA is. Now, if you told me Rykov, Kravtsov, Miller, Henriksson, Robertson, Howden, Andersson and Lundkvist were all there then I'm all for that guy staying in Hartford.

 

[aufheben]

The teams defense structure and on an individual level has seen absolutely no progress under Ruff.

I’m not even sure what to “credit” him for. Fox and Lindgren just got here while Hajek has gotten his head caved in all year and Skjei has taken multiple steps back from his rookie year. TDA is probably worse defensively than he was in ARZ (though he was never good), Pionk was a trash fire here and went to respectability as soon as he left the team. Shattenkirk looks excellent on Tampa and he hasn’t been doing much different than he was on NYR.

It’s not like he inherited a great defense but he didn’t inherit the worst in the NHL and they’ve been bottom 3 in all defensive metrics for going on three straight years under Ruff with an AWFUL penalty kill to boot. He has never, ever coached a good defensive system and i think where he is now is more of the same. Get rid of him.

To be fair, it takes all 18 skaters to play team defense, even if the 6 D look good on paper.

 

[True Blue]

Mike Milbury was more prudent and level-headed in his decision making while GM of the Islanders than most of our fans would be.

We finally have someone coaching competently in Hartford for the kids that are coming. Quick, let's get him out of Hartford.