Quote:
Originally Posted by diane_phaneuf
its not overloading one side, it's aggressive D pinches and they have done it under AV from time to time in the past to great success
Detroit, Boston, Chicago off the top of my head do it and a few others as well and if you have the right personnel (mobile D) it works quite well
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They do overload one side though on the forecheck - whatever side the Dman with the puck is on.
It works great against less skilled teams who insist on trying to use the wall on every breakout. Thing is it requires fast forwards who are adept at getting initial pressure and disrupting the rhythm of the breakout. Also it relies on hoping the other team sticks to set plays instead of using the net D on breakouts and making smart outlets.
AV's style was more about owning the neutral zone and disrupting zone entries setting up massive counterattacks with a weak side D trailer coming in back door.
The 3 teams you mentioned, plus AV's canucks, were all much faster and more skilled up front to be able to pull off that system.
This year's canucks already look exactly like Tortorella's Rangers did - a grinding team that generates a lot of low-percentage shots that will win some games but never be elite.