Post-Game Talk: What Does Scoring Feel Like? Leafs lose 4-0 to Ducks.

[ULF_55]

Regardless of what they do with this core, the focus should be on drafting as many centers as possible. Grabbing extra picks at the same time. Finding a sleeper is out only option if you are not in the top 3 or trade.
Stockpile centers and D. Don't worry about wingers.

Easy to turn a center into a winger, so why not take the guy in the middle. Usually there for a reason, and a sleeper just might be that homerun. I'd be fine if they picked 7 centers.

 

[pspot]

Leafs looked like a middleweight fighting a heavyweight, Leafs getting in equal shots, but power wasn't there.

so playing the way they say they've wanted to play since Burke was hired but were never built with the players to do it

has the buy in come from all players? or bottom 6 guys and top 6 are just going through the motions?

 

[thewave]

Leafs looked like a middleweight fighting a heavyweight, Leafs getting in equal shots, but power wasn't there.

Horachek is not experienced enough to know against a team like that down by 1 = Open it up, Cheat, go balls to the walls, forget the tidy neat little system in place and make this a track meet.

Down by 1 against the Ducks is the same as down by 3 to most other teams in the league.

 

[Trapper]

Horachek is not experienced enough to know against a team like that down by 1 = Open it up, Cheat, go balls to the walls, forget the tidy neat little system in place and make this a track meet.

Down by 1 against the Ducks is the same as down by 3 to most other teams in the league.

Trouble for Horachek right now is trying to teach these players to stay with the new style of play. Changing it at the first sign of trouble (or 4 games) might hurt the buy in.
Once you let the horses out of the stable, they might not come back. When certain players see I'm putting up points out of that 5-5-5 coverage, why would they stop.

 

[WTFMAN99]

To me the system looks a lot better and it just comes down to having a legit #1C and more talent. Another 20 goal scorer on that 2nd line would be nice, but Lupul is injured again.

Then again, the stretch of LA, SJ, STL, and ANA in 4 nights is rough, any team could win a cup.

 

[Mess]

To me the system looks a lot better and it just comes down to having a legit #1C and more talent. Another 20 goal scorer on that 2nd line would be nice, but Lupul is injured again.

Then again, the stretch of LA, SJ, STL, and ANA in 4 nights is rough, any team could win a cup.

The NYR the team the Leafs are chasing for a WC spot just swept through California last week going 3-0 verses the home teams.

Rangers were in the SCF last year so perhaps you're correct.

 

[I Believe]

The chemistry between Getzlaf and Perry is just unreal.

 

[pspot]

To me the system looks a lot better and it just comes down to having a legit #1C and more talent. Another 20 goal scorer on that 2nd line would be nice, but Lupul is injured again.

Then again, the stretch of LA, SJ, STL, and ANA in 4 nights is rough, any team could win a cup.

NJ just beat LA and ran Jones from the net

 

[The Winter Soldier]

Horachek is not experienced enough to know against a team like that down by 1 = Open it up, Cheat, go balls to the walls, forget the tidy neat little system in place and make this a track meet.

Down by 1 against the Ducks is the same as down by 3 to most other teams in the league.

It is far too simple to keep blaming the coach. Leafs open up, maybe they tie it up maybe they get countered and blown up. Fact is we have replaced mediocrities with mediocrities. We never upgraded Grabovski by allocating his 5.5 to better players. Instead we went from mediocrity to mediocrity. This is the problem. We need to draft like ANA to better are player pool. This is the only way out of this. Coaching cannot continue to be the scapegoat.

 

[Mess]

Trouble for Horachek right now is trying to teach these players to stay with the new style of play. Changing it at the first sign of trouble (or 4 games) might hurt the buy in.
Once you let the horses out of the stable, they might not come back. When certain players see I'm putting up points out of that 5-5-5 coverage, why would they stop.

The real underlying issue here is player personnel.

NHL Coaches don't have to instruct players like Bergeron, Datsyuk, Kopitar, Toews etc etc to play "a different way" as they instinctually already are wired to play a 200ft game and know how to support the puck in all zones as their normal style of play. Its why their teams are competitive nightly and what these players have been doing for years.

In Toronto it requires players to leave their comfort zone of their preferred play to try and play a more complete game with the fear they will also instinctually fall back into former poor habits and abandon the 200ft game for the 100ft offensive game. Its an actual coaches accomplishment to get some of his players to focus on defense as well as offense.

A leopard never changes its spots, and perhaps you can only mask them for a short time. Right now is the honeymoon phase of a coaching change occurrence prompting increase attention to detail, and we all know honeymoons end.

 

[highslot]

like casey did with the raptors, horachek is simply trying to teach team defense first. once set, then they can work on the offense. we will lose more as players who've never been responsible or taught properly try to learn a new system.

 

[Trapper]

The real underlying issue here is player personnel.

NHL Coaches don't have to instruct players like Bergeron, Datsyuk, Kopitar, Toews etc etc to play "a different way" as they instinctually already are wired to play a 200ft game and know how to support the puck in all zones as their normal style of play. Its why their teams are competitive nightly and what these players have been doing for years.

In Toronto it requires players to leave their comfort zone of their preferred play to try and play a more complete game with the fear they will also instinctually fall back into former poor habits and abandon the 200ft game for the 100ft offensive game. Its an actual coaches accomplishment to get his some of his players to focus on defense as well as offense.

A leopard never changes its spots, and perhaps you can only mask them for a short time. Right now is the honeymoon phase of a coaching change occurrence prompting increase attention to detail, and we all know honeymoons end.

And the players are now the focus of the final evaluation.
It comes down to Shanny and Dubas saying, ok, this is the way we need to play to be succesful. Now who can't play this way. For various reasons.

 

[zeke]

So frustrating. We should have been going through these systemic growing pains in October not January. What a waste.

But the improvement is still clear on the ice, and I refuse to believe that we're suddenly not going to be able to score now that we're playing a good possession game.

That being said, I'm not too happy about how we responded after giving up the third goal. They had a couple of bursts in the second half but you could see their lack of belief in the comeback.

Another big test tonight. Let's see if they stick with the game plan.

 

[ldnk]

The thing is the Leafs have been struggling to score for a month. They had 20 goals in Carlyle's last 9 games with the team. They have 7 in Horachek's first 4 games. So cheating rush hockey would have given them a whopping two more goals on the trip.

The flip side is that their shots against are way down. Bernier has an .875 SV%. He really hasn't been good in the last 4 games. Not a guy who I would lay all of the blame on, but certainly not a guy who has stepped up his game and been a brick wall for the team.

This, however, is exactly what I wanted to see. Can the team play defense AND offense. If not you blow the roster up in the offseason, but you are setting up the guys who can adapt to be part of whatever moves forward next year. If Gardiner still looks bad, you trade him. If Kessel struggles, maybe you move him, etc. That's not an evaluation for 4 games. It's an evaluation for the rest of the year (or at least until the trade deadline, especially with our UFAs).

 

[ULF_55]

And the players are now the focus of the final evaluation.
It comes down to Shanny and Dubas saying, ok, this is the way we need to play to be successful. Now who can't play this way. For various reasons.

Funny that never came up here?

Oh, there's no problem with ___________ . It is just the support staff.

 

[WTFMAN99]

The NYR the team the Leafs are chasing for a WC spot just swept through California last week going 3-0 verses the home teams.

Rangers were in the SCF last year so perhaps you're correct.

NJ just beat LA and ran Jones from the net

I detect some cheekiness but one game is not a season.

Teams go hot and cold.