Jdavidev
Registered User
When Cassidy was hired, I had no idea if he'd be the right coach for the team, but I KNEW Julien was done (And historically in season coaching changes creates a small positive bump for the team). It happens with coaches and players all over sports. They are good, and then they slide into mediocracy and irrelevance. It happens more so with coaches that are more rigid in their philosophies.
I think Julien "doesn't play the kids" is a misnomer and a bit of a red herring. It seemed that way at times at the end because what a coach of rigid systems needs the most is for everybody to buy in. They work best with a clean house, maybe bring in some of their guys, and when they work, they can work phenomenally. However, when new guys come in, if they don't buy in (whether rookies or trades or FA) then things start to fall apart. Julien would rather go with a lesser talent that plays his way any day of the week.
What I saw was a team divided. The Vets who had been there believed in the system and knew it worked, so it must be the new guys fault. The new guys felt the pressure to measure up, and made things worse. The double standard with mistakes made it worse.
All the talk from Sweeney about making the team faster, went out the window about two weeks into that first season after Chia was let go when they struggled.
Cassidy is not free wheeling. This isn't Lindy Ruff, but he allows players to play to their strengths. Vets and new guys are held accountable. He has an up tempo transition game that favors younger players, so it's up to Vets to keep pace, but he still loves a disposable/rumbling 4th line. He uses what he has, injuries or talent related, and makes the most of it, changing lines and heavily favoring minutes of who's playing well. His system is about scoring from high percentage areas, not grinding the other team down with high quantity shots. It's refreshing, it's honest and it's fun (for us and seemingly the players).
I think Julien "doesn't play the kids" is a misnomer and a bit of a red herring. It seemed that way at times at the end because what a coach of rigid systems needs the most is for everybody to buy in. They work best with a clean house, maybe bring in some of their guys, and when they work, they can work phenomenally. However, when new guys come in, if they don't buy in (whether rookies or trades or FA) then things start to fall apart. Julien would rather go with a lesser talent that plays his way any day of the week.
What I saw was a team divided. The Vets who had been there believed in the system and knew it worked, so it must be the new guys fault. The new guys felt the pressure to measure up, and made things worse. The double standard with mistakes made it worse.
All the talk from Sweeney about making the team faster, went out the window about two weeks into that first season after Chia was let go when they struggled.
Cassidy is not free wheeling. This isn't Lindy Ruff, but he allows players to play to their strengths. Vets and new guys are held accountable. He has an up tempo transition game that favors younger players, so it's up to Vets to keep pace, but he still loves a disposable/rumbling 4th line. He uses what he has, injuries or talent related, and makes the most of it, changing lines and heavily favoring minutes of who's playing well. His system is about scoring from high percentage areas, not grinding the other team down with high quantity shots. It's refreshing, it's honest and it's fun (for us and seemingly the players).
