Quote:
Originally Posted by Serapth
...Yes, young players are going to #### up, and need some time in the press box to develop. But when one of those young players is quite literally the only pariah in the press, someone ####ed up. Sit him, sure. Make a media example of him? Certainly not! Give veterans that are playing many times worse than him more opportunity, and christ! Praise in the media.... thats just bad management.
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Perhaps I missed something, but was there ever an explanation provided by the coaching staff for scratching Baertschi?
You are making two fundamentally unsubstantiated assumptions in your several misguided and irrational posts in this thread:
The first, is that "meritocracy" is very simply defined as awarding games and ice-time
solely on the basis of good and poor performances. I expect that some of this is true, but would further submit that things are actually much, much more complicated.
· Players have set roles, and coaches will make their determinations based on these roles
· Every NHL team will play the game differently, and the coaches will makes decisions based on adjustments that need to be made from game-to-game depending upon whom they are playing
· Players themselves will experience shifts in various aspects of their play, but also in their own mood that could also affect why a coach might choose to play or to scratch them
· Perhaps most importantly, The specific parameters for how the system works is NOT PUBLIC INFORMATION.
So, even though we may see things occur that appear to conflict with management's version of a "meritocracy", this is in no way an proof that they are disingenuous in their approach.
Second, you seem to think that you know the reason behind why Baertschi was scratched for his two games, and you have clearly concluded that it is a form of (unfairly assessed) discipline or punishment. To this I would say that you quite frankly have no idea whether your belief is accurate or not. For all we know, the Flames have pre-determined dates on the calendar for playing or sitting certain players. It is quite possible that Flames coaches have already mapped out with Baertschi a plan for the whole season in which he only plays a certain number of consecutive games. Another possibility is that Baertschi did not physically feel his best following the Chicago game (He did absorb a REALLY hard shot from Wideman in the first period; perhaps it affected him more than we know). If a young player physically, for whatever reason needs a break, but is not injured, why not scratch him instead of adding him to IR? Especially if he has not been playing great?
Finally, there is a fundamental difference between veterans and rookies on this team—and every other NHL team except perhaps the Edmonton Oilers—that supersedes "meritocracy." The fact of the matter is that rookies and veterans will receive different treatment from coaches and management, and this is based on their own needs, function, and course of development.