Quote:
Originally Posted by HighLifeMan
Yet he was glued to the bench when we actually had the LEAD.
That is what really irks me about Brent Sutter, Why must he change his mindset when we have a lead!!. Nonetheless I was happy to see Brent utilize Sven heavily in the final frame as he absolutely deserved that opportunity.
|
1. Brent doesn't change his mindset when we have the lead. The other team does.
2. The other team changes it's mindset because it's trying to tie game and does so by shortening the bench and rolling 3 lines. This means there is less time that lower end players are on the ice, especially 3rd and 4th line player.
3. Sven isn't ready to play against the other teams best players. He's a great player, but he is still a rookie.
4. As a result of 2 and 3, the opportunity to get Sven out against easier competition is significantly reduced, and the opportunity to get Sven out against easier competition in the offensive zone is almost nil. As such, he plays Sven less not because he changes his mindset, but because the other team is pushing to tie the game and the opportunities to get Sven on the ice in a situation he can succeed in are greatly reduced.