Pre-Game Talk: The All Purpose Off Day Thread | Simon Recalled

[ncm7772]

Did Sully realize his pets suck or will he just bench Sheary?

Nah.

 

[Speaking Moistly]

Jake wasn't with the team at the start of the season.

And the question was about Hornqvist after 2016.

Did Sully realize his pets suck or will he just bench Sheary?

Sheary for sure, and then he’ll put Simon in the same spots to fail. Fun.

I don't even buy that you need Rowney for PK duties because he can take faceoffs. The only unit that absolutely needs a center is the first unit for the initial draw. After that you generally change on the fly. And if there's another faceoff soon after Sheahan leaves the ice, surely Crosby or Brassard can take it, then hop off the first chance they get.

Heck, Toronto's top PK unit is usually Komarov and Hyman, neither of which are even centers.

They don’t. If that’s how Sullivan thinks he’s just making excuses to play him.

 

[PensandCaps]

Opinions differ, bro.

My opinion is that he doing one of the worst things you can do as a head coach, and that is play your favorites over other players that give your team the best chance to win.

If you aren't bothered by his lineup decisions, that's cool, but most people are. His asinine decisions are KILLING this team right now, and have at other times this year, as well.

To quote another member;

"We were playing great when we were running Malkin-Rust-Hagelin, then paired Guentzel & Kessel together before Sully inexplicably broke all that apart and completely ****ed up the lines.."

I'm extremely bothered by his lineup decisions. But he's won every year, so I'll wait before jumping to the extreme.

 

[ncm7772]

I'm extremely bothered by his lineup decisions. But he's won every year, so I'll wait before jumping to the extreme.

I respect that. But he needs to do something , anything, to right the ship.

 

[PensandCaps]

Well with Simon up..

Brassard-Sid-Simon
Hagelin-Malkin-Hornqvist
Guentzel-Sheahan-Kessel
Sheary-Rowney(ugh)-Rust

 

[Gurglesons]

Opinions differ, bro.

My opinion is that he doing one of the worst things you can do as a head coach, and that is play your favorites over other players that give your team the best chance to win.

If you aren't bothered by his lineup decisions, that's cool, but most people are. His asinine decisions are KILLING this team right now, and have at other times this year, as well.

To quote another member;

"We were playing great when we were running Malkin-Rust-Hagelin, then paired Guentzel & Kessel together before Sully inexplicably broke all that apart and completely ****ed up the lines.."

You realize we can’t literally replace more than two players with roster rules.

Also, do you want Brass playing with Kuhn and Rowney?

Hornqvist worked well with Malkin.

 

[RizzleMcRib]

These are the numbers for Hornqvist since he has been traded to Pittsburgh.

2015-2016

61.3%	CROSBY,SIDNEY - HORNQVIST,PATRIC - KUNITZ,CHRIS
17.3%	CROSBY,SIDNEY - DUPUIS,PASCAL - HORNQVIST,PATRIC
10%	HORNQVIST,PATRIC - MALKIN,EVGENI - PERRON,DAVID
6.5%	HORNQVIST,PATRIC - KESSEL,PHIL - MALKIN,EVGENI
4.9%	CROSBY,SIDNEY - HAGELIN,CARL - HORNQVIST,PATRIC

[TBODY] [/TBODY]

2016-2017

38.4%	CROSBY,SIDNEY - HORNQVIST,PATRIC - SHEARY,CONOR
22.7%	HAGELIN,CARL - HORNQVIST,PATRIC - MALKIN,EVGENI
13.5%	CROSBY,SIDNEY - HAGELIN,CARL - HORNQVIST,PATRIC
12.8%	HORNQVIST,PATRIC - MALKIN,EVGENI - WILSON,SCOTT
12.6%	GUENTZEL,JAKE - HORNQVIST,PATRIC - MALKIN,EVGENI

[TBODY] [/TBODY]

2017-2018

35.7%	CROSBY,SIDNEY - HORNQVIST,PATRIC - SHEARY,CONOR
33.6%	HAGELIN,CARL - HORNQVIST,PATRIC - MALKIN,EVGENI
11.5%	HORNQVIST,PATRIC - KESSEL,PHIL - MALKIN,EVGENI
11.5%	CROSBY,SIDNEY - GUENTZEL,JAKE - HORNQVIST,PATRIC
7.7%	HAGELIN,CARL - HORNQVIST,PATRIC - SHEAHAN,RILEY

[TBODY] [/TBODY]

 

[ncm7772]

You realize we can’t literally replace more than two players with roster rules.

Also, do you want Brass playing with Kuhn and Rowney?

Hornqvist worked well with Malkin.

Yes, I realize that. My main gripe is he continues to ice both Kuhnackel and Rowney, and broke up the Pens' best line (Hags-Geno-Rust), keeps playing Rust with Sid, breaks up Kessel and Guentzel, etc. The list goes on, man.

 

[Gurglesons]

Yes, I realize that. My main gripe is he continues to ice both Kuhnackel and Rowney, and broke up the Pens' best line (Hags-Geno-Rust), keeps playing Rust with Sid, breaks up Kessel and Guentzel, etc. The list goes on, man.

But, like he admitted ZAR would have been playing.

We literally had to play Rowney and Kuhn until today.

 

[Shaffer]

Newsflash: We didn’t get Brassard to play wing. He should only be on the wing if we are down with five minutes left.

I would run:
Guentzel-Crosby-Simon
Hagelin-Malkin-Hornqvist
Rust-Brassard-Kessel
Sheary-Sheahan-Kuhnhackl

But I think Sullivan is going to run:
Guentzel-Crosby-Rust
Hagelin-Malkin-Hornqvist
Simon-Brassard-Kessel
Sheary-Sheahan-Rowney

 

[RizzleMcRib]

Newsflash: We didn’t get Brassard to play wing. He should only be on the wing if we are down with five minutes left.

I would run:
Guentzel-Crosby-Simon
Hagelin-Malkin-Hornqvist
Rust-Brassard-Kessel
Sheary-Sheahan-Kuhnhackl

But I think Sullivan is going to run:
Guentzel-Crosby-Rust
Hagelin-Malkin-Hornqvist
Simon-Brassard-Kessel
Sheary-Sheahan-Rowney

If he would just switch Rust and Hornqvist I'd be so happy.

 

[Shaffer]

If he would just switch Rust and Hornqvist I'd be so happy.

Me too.

If he would just play Ruhwedel over Hunwick I’d be so happy. It sucks that we have to face reality in that Hunwick/Rowney/Kuhnhackl will all play and Sprong will be stuck in the AHL forever.

 

[Gurglesons]

With Simon up I think the options are pretty logical.

Simon - Crosby - Hornqvist
Hagelin - Malkin - Rust
Guentzel - Brassard - Kessel
Kuhn - Sheahan - Sheary

 

[Asuna]

With Simon up I think the options are pretty logical.

Simon - Crosby - Hornqvist
Hagelin - Malkin - Rust
Guentzel - Brassard - Kessel
Kuhn - Sheahan - Sheary

i think that's the best we're gonna get for now

 

[Mr Jiggyfly]

With Simon up I think the options are pretty logical.

Simon - Crosby - Hornqvist
Hagelin - Malkin - Rust
Guentzel - Brassard - Kessel
Kuhn - Sheahan - Sheary

Yep.

 

[RizzleMcRib]

Me too.

If he would just play Ruhwedel over Hunwick I’d be so happy. It sucks that we have to face reality in that Hunwick/Rowney/Kuhnhackl will all play and Sprong will be stuck in the AHL forever.

You read my mind with Ruh.

 

[vodeni]

horny has been bad since coming off the injury. This is typical Horny. It always works well when they dropp him to one of our bottom two lines so he can work his way up...considering that jake is a lock on Sid's line, the line up should be
Jake Sid Sheary
Hags Geno Rust
Simon Brass Phil
Kuhn Sheahan Horny

and switch Shear with Horny after few games, maybe Sid would accept this if he has Jake on the other side

 

[Sidney the Kidney]

Why was Jooris even sent down in the first place? Was he playing in the AHL when he was acquired, and thus had to be sent down?

It just seems weird to trade for him as depth, only to immediately send him down knowing you'll then have to waste one of your four call-ups on him to bring him back up.

 

[RizzleMcRib]

With Simon up I think the options are pretty logical.

Simon - Crosby - Hornqvist
Hagelin - Malkin - Rust
Guentzel - Brassard - Kessel
Kuhn - Sheahan - Sheary

As much as I would like Simon on the 3rd and Guentz with Crosby, I'd be happy with those lines.

 

[ColePens]

Boy oh boy.. the poison of negativity is out in full force. Disgusting. Fire Sully? JR sucks? Goodness gracious. And my biggest hate of all time is people lumping these together. As usual let's break it down.

- Brassard trade: Stop f***ing lumping this in to our defensive issues. This trade was a slam dunk 24/7 as it fixed our issue this year and next. Something we desperately needed. Move on.

- Defense part 1: Let's just talk about Ian Cole. Whatever stubbornness Cole/Sully had was unfortunate. Those 2 should have put aside differences for the betterment of the team. Ian Cole probably could have been moved for a pick when he was being benched, which I always thought was dumb. He's moved in a trade to get a great player back. I'm okay with that. What i'm not okay with is JR not addressing that. That's on JR because realistically prices WERE affordable. So yes.. this is on JR. But GMs make mistakes. If this is his mistake, it's not the end of the world. Ruh/Corrado/Hunwick should/could be enough to step up. We've had nothing but gems come up offensively from WBS. Why not defensively? And oh.. it was clear now Oleksiak was brought in to replace Cole. Bad thought process. Those 2 play a very different brand of hockey.

- Defense part 2: This issue has been an all-season affair. Every player is playing weaker than he should. That tells me something is wrong with the scheme. Not every player can just all of a sudden be playing poorly. I think Sully needs to fix the scheme a little and it starts with the offense. We need waaaaaaaaaaaaay more support from our offense to be successful. I would not be against collapsing big time in our d-zone and I think we need more help defensively in the neutral zone from our offense as well. All together it needs adjusted. Go at it, Sully. Get these guys engaged/focused on defensive/responsible hockey.

- Ups/downs: Part of any team. Part of the game of hockey. Part of life. It happens. A 3 game skid doesn't mean we are going to be a first round exit. A dominant home stand doesn't mean we are winning the Cup. It's part of hockey.

- Sid/Kessel: Both of these guys need to step it back up. I'm giving 81 a pass right now because he put the team on his back early on and then Geno took over. Sid.... Holy shit. Pick it up.

- Sully: Lines/coaching need to be better. He doesn't need to be fired. There are clearly some red flags to watch, but let it unfold. Rowney/Kuhn are obvious red flags. Not adjusting our d-zone ALL YEAR is a red flag. But the guy hasn't even lost a playoff series yet for us and a lot of it has been adjustment. If he goes full 2010-2013 Dan Bylsma, then i'll say it's time to speak up. Right now we have to keep those red flags on our mind, but remember he's earned time.


Bottom line - calm the f*** down and let's see where this goes. I think some people are bringing up great topics but when it comes to calling for heads, calm the hell down.

 

[RizzleMcRib]

Boy oh boy.. the poison of negativity is out in full force. Disgusting. Fire Sully? JR sucks? Goodness gracious. And my biggest hate of all time is people lumping these together. As usual let's break it down.

- Brassard trade: Stop ****ing lumping this in to our defensive issues. This trade was a slam dunk 24/7 as it fixed our issue this year and next. Something we desperately needed. Move on.

- Defense part 1: Let's just talk about Ian Cole. Whatever stubbornness Cole/Sully had was unfortunate. Those 2 should have put aside differences for the betterment of the team. Ian Cole probably could have been moved for a pick when he was being benched, which I always thought was dumb. He's moved in a trade to get a great player back. I'm okay with that. What i'm not okay with is JR not addressing that. That's on JR because realistically prices WERE affordable. So yes.. this is on JR. But GMs make mistakes. If this is his mistake, it's not the end of the world. Ruh/Corrado/Hunwick should/could be enough to step up. We've had nothing but gems come up offensively from WBS. Why not defensively? And oh.. it was clear now Oleksiak was brought in to replace Cole. Bad thought process. Those 2 play a very different brand of hockey.

- Defense part 2: This issue has been an all-season affair. Every player is playing weaker than he should. That tells me something is wrong with the scheme. Not every player can just all of a sudden be playing poorly. I think Sully needs to fix the scheme a little and it starts with the offense. We need waaaaaaaaaaaaay more support from our offense to be successful. I would not be against collapsing big time in our d-zone and I think we need more help defensively in the neutral zone from our offense as well. All together it needs adjusted. Go at it, Sully. Get these guys engaged/focused on defensive/responsible hockey.

- Ups/downs: Part of any team. Part of the game of hockey. Part of life. It happens. A 3 game skid doesn't mean we are going to be a first round exit. A dominant home stand doesn't mean we are winning the Cup. It's part of hockey.

- Sid/Kessel: Both of these guys need to step it back up. I'm giving 81 a pass right now because he put the team on his back early on and then Geno took over. Sid.... Holy ****. Pick it up.

- Sully: Lines/coaching need to be better. He doesn't need to be fired. There are clearly some red flags to watch, but let it unfold. Rowney/Kuhn are obvious red flags. Not adjusting our d-zone ALL YEAR is a red flag. But the guy hasn't even lost a playoff series yet for us and a lot of it has been adjustment. If he goes full 2010-2013 Dan Bylsma, then i'll say it's time to speak up. Right now we have to keep those red flags on our mind, but remember he's earned time.


Bottom line - calm the **** down and let's see where this goes. I think some people are bringing up great topics but when it comes to calling for heads, calm the hell down.

How dare you come in here with rational and positivity!

 

[Shaffer]

With Simon up I think the options are pretty logical.

Simon - Crosby - Hornqvist
Hagelin - Malkin - Rust
Guentzel - Brassard - Kessel
Kuhn - Sheahan - Sheary

Too bad Sullivan is stubborn.

 

[Sidney the Kidney]

Boy oh boy.. the poison of negativity is out in full force. Disgusting. Fire Sully? JR sucks? Goodness gracious. And my biggest hate of all time is people lumping these together. As usual let's break it down.

- Brassard trade: Stop ****ing lumping this in to our defensive issues. This trade was a slam dunk 24/7 as it fixed our issue this year and next. Something we desperately needed. Move on.

- Defense part 1: Let's just talk about Ian Cole. Whatever stubbornness Cole/Sully had was unfortunate. Those 2 should have put aside differences for the betterment of the team. Ian Cole probably could have been moved for a pick when he was being benched, which I always thought was dumb. He's moved in a trade to get a great player back. I'm okay with that. What i'm not okay with is JR not addressing that. That's on JR because realistically prices WERE affordable. So yes.. this is on JR. But GMs make mistakes. If this is his mistake, it's not the end of the world. Ruh/Corrado/Hunwick should/could be enough to step up. We've had nothing but gems come up offensively from WBS. Why not defensively? And oh.. it was clear now Oleksiak was brought in to replace Cole. Bad thought process. Those 2 play a very different brand of hockey.

- Defense part 2: This issue has been an all-season affair. Every player is playing weaker than he should. That tells me something is wrong with the scheme. Not every player can just all of a sudden be playing poorly. I think Sully needs to fix the scheme a little and it starts with the offense. We need waaaaaaaaaaaaay more support from our offense to be successful. I would not be against collapsing big time in our d-zone and I think we need more help defensively in the neutral zone from our offense as well. All together it needs adjusted. Go at it, Sully. Get these guys engaged/focused on defensive/responsible hockey.

- Ups/downs: Part of any team. Part of the game of hockey. Part of life. It happens. A 3 game skid doesn't mean we are going to be a first round exit. A dominant home stand doesn't mean we are winning the Cup. It's part of hockey.

- Sid/Kessel: Both of these guys need to step it back up. I'm giving 81 a pass right now because he put the team on his back early on and then Geno took over. Sid.... Holy ****. Pick it up.

- Sully: Lines/coaching need to be better. He doesn't need to be fired. There are clearly some red flags to watch, but let it unfold. Rowney/Kuhn are obvious red flags. Not adjusting our d-zone ALL YEAR is a red flag. But the guy hasn't even lost a playoff series yet for us and a lot of it has been adjustment. If he goes full 2010-2013 Dan Bylsma, then i'll say it's time to speak up. Right now we have to keep those red flags on our mind, but remember he's earned time.


Bottom line - calm the **** down and let's see where this goes. I think some people are bringing up great topics but when it comes to calling for heads, calm the hell down.

You're just defending Sullivan because you're a big fan of Kuhnhackl and Rowney.

 

[ColePens]

You're just defending Sullivan because you're a big fan of Kuhnhackl and Rowney.

 

[Brandinho]

I understand the criticism of Sully a lot more than the criticism of JR. Yeah, I still don't know what he was thinking with Hunwick. Hunwick being awful was an easily predictable outcome - he never should have been signed in the first place. The issue was compounded by not acquiring anybody at the deadline. However, the ostracization of Cole was arguably an even bigger issue and that, once again, is on Sully. That isn't to say that I think Sully should be fired - that's an extreme overreaction, but I'm certainly not happy with his job performance as of late.