Quote:
Originally Posted by tvp2003
It's because Darryl (a) doesn't say much, and (b) doesn't have to say much. From 2003/04 season:
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I think this anecdote, while just that, sums up the difference perfectly. Half of the coaches responsibility is to manage emotion of the players and use it to the teams advantage, especially with a young team. GG comes off as a a guy that has the emotional understanding of a wooden board. Guys like Frolik and Backlund that have spent their life being emotionally manipulated don't need a coach to channel their emotions (hence their success). Tkatchuck has a personal coach with over 1000 NHL games of experience that he speaks with every night and manages him after every game. The rest of the young guys struggle.
The continued emphasis by some that the captains should be this influence is a complete misconception of how teams at any level work. A captain can inspire and motivate and help motivate the guys by giving credibility to the coaches words, but at the end of the day is a peer. The captain is the key to gluing the team together, but is in a difficult position when trying to call players out on their play as he is part of it.
The Flames are learning to play in a way that will result in a more consistent result based on team skill. If they can be good enough to methodically pick apart teams going forward and win playoff series' without being able to win this emotional battle remains to be seen. It's my personal opinion that the playoffs are all about managing emotion (hence we regularly see teams force upsets in the playoffs). I think if this team makes it to the playoffs under GGs tenure...we will be pretty disappointed with the outcome.
/rant