Please share some thoughts when you get a chance. Thanks.
Alright, here are my thoughts. I didn't have the time to watch each player carefully, so I'll share my thoughts on them tomorrow after the next practice.
First of all, let's talk about the team identity. I believe Trotz is trying to make them play a fast, north-south game. Nearly all the drills had the players skating full speed up and down the ice. A lot of odd-man rushes, transition drills and cycling in the offensive zone above the circles. They do practice the play where a forward comes at the blue line between the two D to give them an option and then they rotate to create other passing lanes. On the rush, they practiced tip-in plays where one forward is ahead of the puck carrier and a D comes in as support through the middle. Expect to see tip-in goals on the rush, just like the Connolly goal against the Canes, because that's precisely what they practice.
Now, I'll share my thoughts on all the forwards I paid attention to. I'll do the D tomorrow.
Alex Ovechkin: He's not that much taller than his teammates, but he's by far the heaviest guy on the ice. You can feel it when he skates past you and you feel the vibrations in the ground. He has the acceleration of a tanker, but he's still one of the fastest guys on the team when he gets going. He needs to drop a few pounds to regain his acceleration. He's one of the laziest guys at practice, he looks casual all the time but he executes all the drills very well when he's focused. He's surprisingly good defensively, he broke up a 2vs1 with ease during the 2vs2 drill with close nets and two pucks. He's gotten very good at tipping pucks in, expect to see more tip-in goals. His playmaking isn't gone, he still has a great vision and a nice touch with the puck. He dangles a lot more in practice compared to game situations, he fooled a few Ds with his toe drag. He just needs to move his feet and he'll be among the top scorers in the league again. The goalies were unable to stop his shot today, he scored on almost every shot.
Evgeny Kuznetsov: He's gifted, he has the best hands on the team and a shot he should use more. He makes everything look effortless. He looked exactly like he did last year when he was scoring a point per game. Confidence seems to be back, he was having a good time out there. There was one drill where he had to protect the puck in the corner against coach Reirden, and he put the puck through his legs 2 or 3 times in just 3 seconds.
Justin Williams: He's not fast, he doesn't have great hands, he has a muffin of a shot but he gets by because he's smart and tenacious on the puck. He's rarely out of position and he's very opportunistic around the net. I feel like he's becoming a full time grinder now.
Marcus Johansson: Excels at nothing, but no apparent weakness in his game. A jack of all trades, and he skates very fast which helps him make the right plays all over the ice. He's the kind of guy Trotz should trust in any situation.
Nicklas Backstrom: Easily the best player on the team, both offensively and defensively. There's nothing that he doesn't do very well, and his understanding of the game is off the charts. He's not as slow as he appears to be in games, he's got decent speed and acceleration. Backstrom almost never misses a pass and has a thousand ways to execute a given play. He did a backhand pass on the rush without moving his hands, just by rotating his hips. I didn't know that was even possible. He has surpassed Ovechkin, to my great surprise.
TJ Oshie: Only thing holding him back is his terrible skating technique. He looks awkward on his skates and has a poor balance when he's moving around. He fell on his face when attempting to catch a pass with his skate because he stepped on the puck. Otherwise, he does the rest very well and his creativity allows him to make a play in seemingly impossible situations.
Lars Eller: Unimpressive, no scoring touch, doesn't use his size as much as he should and lacks the intensity of the other bottom 6 players.
Andre Burakovsky: He truly is a one dimensional player. When you watch him skate and shoot the puck, you'd think he's one of the best players on the team. Then, you watch him attempt to defend and he looks like a Junior player. He only knows one direction, North. He's ineffective in the East-West direction because he's not a very good playmaker. I'm not sure what we can do with him. I think the Tre Kronor line was very beneficial to him because he could develop the rest of his game by playing with two of the smartest players on the team.
Jakub Vrana: Looks more prepared for the NHL than Burakovsky. He's very close to leaping over Burt in the development process if he hasn't already. He can shoot the puck almost as well, and he's got more tricks up his sleeve. I think we can turn him into a sniper version of Kuznetsov.
Jay Beagle: Looks more like a 3rd line C than a 4th line C. He's way ahead of his 4th line line mates in terms of skill, and his intensity in practice is the same as in games. He's got good hands, a decent snapshot and he goes to the dirty areas. Like Johansson, he can be trusted to play anywhere, and I'd like Trotz to give him some good minutes. He has taken a step forward as a hockey player this year, his production is no fluke.
Tom Wilson: Easily the worst finisher on the team. He stayed on the ice after practice with Orlov to do one-timers from the left circle, and they hit everything but the net. He looked at the ceiling in frustration a few times, his confidence appears to be very low. Honestly, he should be allowed to play his style and perhaps become a Holmstrom-type player who just goes to the net to deflect pucks. His hand-eye coordination is pretty good, he's capable of deflecting shots with consistency.
Haven't seen enough of Winnik, Sanford and Connolly, will cover them tomorrow.
OT: Got my Kuznetsov t-shirt signed by Beagle and Carlson, that was really cool.
). Not all of us were particularly concerned with the shuffling line combinations, especially early in the season. Give these guys 5+ games to see what they can do. We know what Winnik and Wilson bring to the table. We're learning quickly what Connolly and Sanford can offer. Let's see what the others can contribute in the big show.
