GDT: Toronto presents the Hurricanes with a set of Arabian Goggles

[Bjornar Moxnes]

This is absolutely true. It's both an offensive and defensive issue with our wingers.

Look at the number of times PER GAME that our wingers do an absolutely atrocious job of getting the puck over the red line. There are so many silly turnovers, little failures to make plays that ought to be routine but become fire drills in out own zone. Look at how often our defensemen are forced to cover both high and low options because a winger lost his assignment at the point.

That stuff wears on a defenseman. You can't play your game when you're constantly having to stop and backpedal, having to step out of position to chase guys who come loose high in the zone. You end up with guys chasing the play the whole game, which is exhausting both physically and mentally.

I see it most in Slavin this year. I don't think he got dumber over the offseason. But he spends an awful lot of time glancing over his shoulder because there's blown coverage elsewhere in the zone. The mistakes I'm seeing from him come down to a guy trying to do too many things at once, and I think that can probably be said of most of our defensemen at this point, particularly whoever has the misfortune to play with Skinner on a given shift.

Aren't Aho, Lindholm, etc. all great defensive wingers?

 

[tarheelhockey]

Aren't Aho, Lindholm, etc. all great defensive wingers?

What’s the “etc” in that sentence?

I wouldn’t consider Lindholm a *great* defensive winger. Not sure I’d see Aho that way at this stage of his career, though he certainly has the potential to grow into a very good one. Both are currently adequate but not anywhere near the top of that ladder.

What’s hurting us most, going back to the first part of my post, is that our wingers turn the puck over like crazy, especially in transition. To the extent that some of them are decent defensively, it’s irrelevant if they’re the one turning the puck over and are now 30 feet behind the play.

 

[garnetpalmetto]

Astral plane

I see your Jonathan Richman and raise you a Jimmie Vaughan

 

[sheriff bart]

On the bright side, imagine if that was a home game and you had paid to see that in person.

I don't know what rock bottom is, but that was it

 

[MinJaBen]

I don't know what rock bottom is, but that was it

Somewhere in Nashville I think I just heard BP, Darling and Faulk say “hold my beer” in unison.

 

[Lempo]

On the bright side, imagine if that was a home game and you had paid to see that in person.

I don't know what rock bottom is, but that was it

Rock bottom is something that surrounds Rock Ridge, and we just had an Original Six pulled on us.

 

[sheriff bart]

Somewhere in Nashville I think I just heard BP, Darling and Faulk say “hold my beer” in unison.

You know, I feel like the Nashville game has train wreck written all over it. This has to be a fragile team right now.

 

[These Are The Days]

I see your Jonathan Richman and raise you a Jimmie Vaughan

Is it too late to respond with this?



I feel like the lyrics sum up the feelings of every Canes fan this year quite adequately

 

[RodTheBawd]

This is absolutely true. It's both an offensive and defensive issue with our wingers.

Look at the number of times PER GAME that our wingers do an absolutely atrocious job of getting the puck over the red line. There are so many silly turnovers, little failures to make plays that ought to be routine but become fire drills in out own zone. Look at how often our defensemen are forced to cover both high and low options because a winger lost his assignment at the point.

That stuff wears on a defenseman. You can't play your game when you're constantly having to stop and backpedal, having to step out of position to chase guys who come loose high in the zone. You end up with guys chasing the play the whole game, which is exhausting both physically and mentally.

I see it most in Slavin this year. I don't think he got dumber over the offseason. But he spends an awful lot of time glancing over his shoulder because there's blown coverage elsewhere in the zone. The mistakes I'm seeing from him come down to a guy trying to do too many things at once, and I think that can probably be said of most of our defensemen at this point, particularly whoever has the misfortune to play with Skinner on a given shift.

Good post, THH. Peters had mentioned on a couple of occasions that the forwards aren't making our d-man's jobs any easier (specifically regarding the perceived drop off in play from guys like Slavin) and I brushed it off as some bullshit excuse. The covering of both high and low options is spot on now that I actually think about it. Gives me something else to pay attention to.

 

[WreckingCrew]

Good post, THH. Peters had mentioned on a couple of occasions that the forwards aren't making our d-man's jobs any easier (specifically regarding the perceived drop off in play from guys like Slavin) and I brushed it off as some bull**** excuse. The covering of both high and low options is spot on now that I actually think about it. Gives me something else to pay attention to.

That's all we need, something else to pay attention to and get pissed off at besides the goaltending, defense, special teams, lack of offense, lethargy, lineup shuffles, lack of call-ups, coaching...

 

[Canes]

I don’t really buy our forwards just now starting to play bad defensively with another season of our young forwards gaining more experience. They play similar to the way they always do: inconsistent.

Even if true, sounds more like something the coach needs to fix or the GM needs to give a wake up call by trading one of those forwards. Hard to blame the forwards themselves once they have sucked long enough for management and coaching to do nothing about it.

Blaming them seems like an easy way to excuse our “stacked” defenses subpar play. But that’s just me. I’m not enamored enough by anyone on this team to make excuses for them. Even Aho needs to step it the f*** up.

 

[Joe McGrath]

Special Teams last year on 12/21: +14
Special Teams this year: -8

That’s a 22 goal swing from this time last year in the wrong direction. Horrifying.

 

[geehaad]

I don’t really buy our forwards just now starting to play bad defensively with another season of our young forwards gaining more experience. They play similar to the way they always do: inconsistent.

Even if true, sounds more like something the coach needs to fix or the GM needs to give a wake up call by trading one of those forwards. Hard to blame the forwards themselves once they have sucked long enough for management and coaching to do nothing about it.

Blaming them seems like an easy way to excuse our “stacked” defenses subpar play. But that’s just me. I’m not enamored enough by anyone on this team to make excuses for them. Even Aho needs to step it the **** up.

The shotgun method: aim at enough targets and it's likely you'll hit the culprit in there somewhere. Interesting, though, that the goaltenders escaped without wound...

 

[RodTheBawd]

Special Teams last year on 12/21: +14
Special Teams this year: -8

That’s a 22 goal swing from this time last year in the wrong direction. Horrifying.

And thats almost entirely attributable to the PK, right? Although, I feel like I do recall the PP wasn't as atrocious as normal to start last year, which probably contributed to the gap, but I could be wrong.

 

[sheriff bart]

I don't think a GDT title has ever been more accurate of the actual outcome of the game.

 

[tarheelhockey]

I don't think a GDT title has ever been more accurate of the actual outcome of the game.

Turn an 8 on its side.

 

[WreckingCrew]

I don't think a GDT title has ever been more accurate of the actual outcome of the game.

Glad I waited until I got home to Google Arabian Goggles...

PSA...don't

Also, I think we were served tea...

 

[Lempo]

Turn an 8 on its side.

Not that bitch of a figure again!

 

[Negan4Coach]

Glad I waited until I got home to Google Arabian Goggles...

PSA...don't

Also, I think we were served tea...

I'm just shocked that Hank didn't ding me for "cultural appropriation" for using that term.

 

[Lempo]

I'm just shocked that Hank didn't ding me for "cultural appropriation" for using that term.

Doing that would actually imply horrendous stereotypical implications.

"No sir you can't, that is the way of the Greeks!"