Post-Game Talk: Senators @ Blue Jackets | Well, that got chippy

[Nac Mac Feegle]

Haven't checked the stats lately but that's something that the pundits talk about as a negative for this team, both last year and to start this year we're significantly lower than league average (something along the lines of blocking only 10% vs a league average of 25%). Not sure what to make of that exactly, but I suppose if you allow the goalie to see the shot and just focus on clearing the rebound, it could be an effective way to break out.

All depends on the system the team uses and the confidence in the goalies.

Considering the way Andy and Lehner have problems with wraparounds, I suspect their puck-tracking abilities are average, at best. That would make it a lot harder for them to recover and setup if there's a lot of guys blocking shots and crowding up in front of them.

If you have a quick transition game, it makes sense to stay on your feet....or at least have the faster guys stay upright.

 

[BadMcFadden]

So does anyone else notice how lehner rolls around on his stomach in the crease, or is otherwise in some very unusual bad-looking position several times a game?

I believe on one sequence last night he was sprawled on his stomach with his head actually inside the net and luckily the blue jackets forward in the slot slapped the puck into his pad...

His numbers are good, but when I watch him play I find I frequently see him rolling around the crease in ridiculous looking midget-hockey-type goalie positions:/

 

[YouGotAStuGoing]

So does anyone else notice how lehner rolls around on his stomach in the crease, or is otherwise in some very unusual bad-looking position several times a game?

I believe on one sequence last night he was sprawled on his stomach with his head actually inside the net and luckily the blue jackets forward in the slot slapped the puck into his pad...

His numbers are good, but when I watch him play I find I frequently see him rolling around the crease in ridiculous looking midget-hockey-type goalie positions:/

They said the same about Dominik Hasek.

 

[StefanW]

I believe the idea is that blocking shots is bad in two ways. First, players get injured. Second, a partially blocked shot can end up anywhere, including on someone's stick in a primo scoring area. Mac brought that way of thinking with him coming out of Detroit.

Of course there is the issue of blocked shots meaning you have the puck less. Ottawa has consistently had pretty decent possession numbers since Mac got here, so of course their blocked shots would be on the lower end of team-by-team ranking to begin with.

 

[BankStreetParade]

All depends on the system the team uses and the confidence in the goalies.

Considering the way Andy and Lehner have problems with wraparounds, I suspect their puck-tracking abilities are average, at best. That would make it a lot harder for them to recover and setup if there's a lot of guys blocking shots and crowding up in front of them.

If you have a quick transition game, it makes sense to stay on your feet....or at least have the faster guys stay upright.

Many of the league's top teams don't block shots at a high rate: Chicago, LA, St. Louis, Detroit, Minnesota, Pittsburgh, Ottawa - all teams in the bottom 10 of team shot blocking. All teams that rely on possession of the puck.

Also, I think there's even more of an emphasis this year because blocked shots are unpredictable in their projections, the puck could just as easily deflect to the net as it could be completely stopped. And with the fact that any pucks deflected out of play in the defensive zone result in defensive zone faceoffs there might be extra emphasis on the idea of getting control of the puck rather than playing in front of the puck.

 

[StefanW]

So does anyone else notice how lehner rolls around on his stomach in the crease, or is otherwise in some very unusual bad-looking position several times a game?

I believe on one sequence last night he was sprawled on his stomach with his head actually inside the net and luckily the blue jackets forward in the slot slapped the puck into his pad...

His numbers are good, but when I watch him play I find I frequently see him rolling around the crease in ridiculous looking midget-hockey-type goalie positions:/

This is the exact reason why Hasek was cut from so many teams and never amounted to anything in the league.

 

[Nac Mac Feegle]

I think shot blocking definitely has a place in the game. Problem is some teams went a little overboard with it and used it as their default defensive zone tactic.

If there's a few seconds left in the period and your on the PK or some guys are late coming back to the zone, it's definitely an option. Or if someone is taking a shot from a particular angle and the points aren't manned very well and you know any decent bounce will make it past the blueline.

If you have a winger set up high at the blueline poised to grab or chase down a puck from a blocked shot, it has the potential to give a team some juicy breakaways. But, it all depends on the overall hockey IQ and quick reaction time of the team.

Many of our guys are fairly slow to react to anything that isn't part of their gameplan/assignmnet, so I doubt we'd be able to make use of blocking a lot of shots.


Edit:

Not to mention the psychological aspect of it in regards to team building and culture. The pack mentality, of all for one and one for all, sacrificing yourself for the team and all that. When molding a young team, seeing vets put themselves at risk like that has an influence on the kids.

 

[OgieO]

So does anyone else notice how lehner rolls around on his stomach in the crease, or is otherwise in some very unusual bad-looking position several times a game?

I believe on one sequence last night he was sprawled on his stomach with his head actually inside the net and luckily the blue jackets forward in the slot slapped the puck into his pad...

His numbers are good, but when I watch him play I find I frequently see him rolling around the crease in ridiculous looking midget-hockey-type goalie positions:/

I think its pretty cool that he's already very good and has room to improve his technique. Pretty exciting actually.

 

[Vesa Awesaka]

Volchenkov blocked shots and we were a better team because of it. Its not for everybody but i think every team should have one or two guys who excel at it. An extra tool to have on the team. On the pk closing down the point and blocking the shot is important because 90 percent of the time your goalie is being screened by an opposing forward

 

[Niv]

I've been noticing Ceci is taking his game to a whole new level this season, it's very exciting to watch. And MacLean is giving him the chances to do so, which is great. And I see absolutely no reason to send Lazar down, the kid is here to stay.

 

[Benjamin]

Shot blocking wears a person down. Its better in the long run to only block what has to be blocked. Not every shot needs to be blocked.

How many goals go in because a player is trying to block a shot but instead screens the goalie or deflects it in? How many players go down to block a shot but get faked out and are now out of position?

Shot blocking should be kept to a minimal. I like that Maclean does this.

 

[Icelevel]

I've been noticing Ceci is taking his game to a whole new level this season, it's very exciting to watch. And MacLean is giving him the chances to do so, which is great. And I see absolutely no reason to send Lazar down, the kid is here to stay.

i think lazar probably has more of an impact on the game than pageau would. but, how much difference is there? i'm really not sure. lazar has more size and seems better in faceoffs, but what would be the change if lazar went back and pageau came up?

 

[Derivation]

This is the exact reason why Hasek was cut from so many teams and never amounted to anything in the league.

Wait... what? This is sarcasm right?

 

[Clarke]

Wait... what? This is sarcasm right?

yes.

 

[Niv]

i think lazar probably has more of an impact on the game than pageau would. but, how much difference is there? i'm really not sure. lazar has more size and seems better in faceoffs, but what would be the change if lazar went back and pageau came up?

At this point I would only be happy to see Pageau called up if he's willing to play on the wing and is able to play well at that position. Lazar is definitely ahead of him on the depth chart right now IMO and even he has to often play on the wing.

 

[bonehead]

Against a Columbus team hit by multiple injuries we still got outshot and, again, needed great goalkeeping to win. If the netminders stumble it could get ugly. Some thoughts on the game:

- some players have really picked it up lately (Michalek, Gryba) while a few others continue to add little (Legwand, Neil)
- Stone had a strong game with lots of very smart plays and his line with Lazar and Condra was solid
- Ryan could have had a couple but did not play well (that's kind of his game, I think)
- Boro isn't highly skilled but he's more skilled than I expected and is a very solid 5/6
- unlike many others, I did not think Cowen played well and offered more of the same (poor puck skill, not that physical); playing him with Karlsson (Mr. Wildcard) would seem to be a recipe for disaster; like Wiercioch before, I'd give him a run of 5 games and see if he makes any progress; I don't see a long-term future here unless he can grow out of the "big/immobile/unskilled" category because we have too many of those already
- Mika had a few chances but he's playing with zero confidence and almost no puck skill; not sure how you can survive as a 2nd-line centre without being able to pass or carry the puck well

The above sounds a little negative but I think we're much better than last year and have a chance to be quite a decent team with Methot back and if the younger players (Stone, Lazar, Hoffman, Pageau) claim ice-time from the older/slow/less effective players (we all know who they are)

 

[Karl Eriksson]

Legwand is an F'ing hot mess.

 

[Holdurbreathe]

Zibanejad needs to fix the faceoffs. He's been in the league for a while and it needs to be fixed. It's not just that goal right off the faceoff tonight - it's about holding the puck more often.

We can't always play Montreal - have our young players lose a ton of faceoffs and still face stomp the Smurfs.

While there is always room for improvement, Zibby is currently 2nd in FO%, for centers, behind Lazar.

Now Lazar has only taken 30 FOs, so while technically ahead, his sample size is really too small.

Hence Zibby has been the most reliable (regular) center over the first 8 games taking FOs.

Regarding his overall performance, he has been easily the second best center most nights and was probably the best center against Chicago.

Points are not the sole measure of a players performance/contribution.

IMO people need to focus more on the big picture and less on one play (good or bad) to formulate opinions.

 

[Dysentery]

I don't understand how you can lose a defensive faceoff so cleanly.

If you block the opposing Centers stick the moment the refs thumb twitches, there should be no way they can win it back to the point so cleanly. It's not rocket surgery.

 

[YNWA14]

Points are not the sole measure, but as a second line centre they are expected. Zibanejad is still young but he hasn't been good this year, and being 'just ok' is definitely not a positive for a second line centre who was 6th overall. I think if we all lowered our expectations for him we'd be better off.

Also I don't think that Pageau is our first call up at this point. I think he's best forgotten for now until he can re-establish himself.

 

[HSF]

Points are not the sole measure, but as a second line centre they are expected. Zibanejad is still young but he hasn't been good this year, and being 'just ok' is definitely not a positive for a second line centre who was 6th overall. I think if we all lowered our expectations for him we'd be better off.

Also I don't think that Pageau is our first call up at this point. I think he's best forgotten for now until he can re-establish himself.

Luke Richardson believes pageau should be the next call up and he also had the best camp out of anyone left in bingo

 

[freddy61]

Ceci had to concentrate on defense first which he did. With a better feel for the game, now we can see him adding some offense to his game. Early last year, it looked like our right side was the weak side in terms of depth but at a young age he's really solidified the right side D ranking 2nd behind EK.

I don't mind Gryba in the 3rd pairing if the league doesn't make him become tentative by using his clean hits to stop head shots just because he's from a non USA small market team. It's obvious the CBJ player didn't have his chin strap on properly so with the helmet flying off it made a high chest hit look worse than it was when his head snapped back as a normal recoil.

Cowen had a decent game. He'll do fine if he stops chasing guys away from his net area and just plays his position

 

[Holdurbreathe]

Against a Columbus team hit by multiple injuries we still got outshot and, again, needed great goalkeeping to win. If the netminders stumble it could get ugly. Some thoughts on the game:

- some players have really picked it up lately (Michalek, Gryba) while a few others continue to add little (Legwand, Neil)
- Stone had a strong game with lots of very smart plays and his line with Lazar and Condra was solid
- Ryan could have had a couple but did not play well (that's kind of his game, I think)
- Boro isn't highly skilled but he's more skilled than I expected and is a very solid 5/6
- unlike many others, I did not think Cowen played well and offered more of the same (poor puck skill, not that physical); playing him with Karlsson (Mr. Wildcard) would seem to be a recipe for disaster; like Wiercioch before, I'd give him a run of 5 games and see if he makes any progress; I don't see a long-term future here unless he can grow out of the "big/immobile/unskilled" category because we have too many of those already
- Mika had a few chances but he's playing with zero confidence and almost no puck skill; not sure how you can survive as a 2nd-line centre without being able to pass or carry the puck well

The above sounds a little negative but I think we're much better than last year and have a chance to be quite a decent team with Methot back and if the younger players (Stone, Lazar, Hoffman, Pageau) claim ice-time from the older/slow/less effective players (we all know who they are)

Ryan played a very good game IMO, 6 shots, 1 assist, +2, 1 hit and 1 TKA.

Cowen definitely played well and got better as the game went on.

Mika has been fine and has on several occasions made key plays that lead to goals, unfortunately for his statistics ended up as the fourth player in the sequence.

 

[Holdurbreathe]

Luke Richardson believes pageau should be the next call up and he also had the best camp out of anyone left in bingo

Pageau has to hope two centers get injured, and barring injuries, the organization feels he can be successful playing on either wing. Otherwise he won't be in Ottawa anytime soon IMO.

 

[Minister of Offence]

i think lazar probably has more of an impact on the game than pageau would. but, how much difference is there? i'm really not sure. lazar has more size and seems better in faceoffs, but what would be the change if lazar went back and pageau came up?

Probably a slight difference now and a growing difference going forward.

Lazars been better than more than just a couple guys