Quote:
Originally Posted by Toonage
Posted this in the What do the team practices look like thread. Maybe more appropriate here. Just my thoughts:
Yeah I don't believe emotion or lack thereof is a concern with Gulutzan. I think its how he wants the team to play and their inability to execute that plan. As someone (or multiple people here) noted, the team is afraid to make mistakes as their gameplan falls apart if they aren't on point.
Gulutzan clearly is trying to drill this into them during practices but the execution is lacking which points to a system that would appear to be just too complicated. This helps explain slow starts to not only the games themselves giving the impression the team isn't prepared but also slow starts to the past few seasons.
It also explains (to me) why they never change their gameplan against certain teams and why those games go worse than others. A one size fits all approach to opponents and the inability to execute it and a fear of screwing it up.
|
I think this is where the issue is. When all of the D look lost, unsure what to do and panicked with the puck all the time I think it's more of an issue with them feeling comfortable with the system and than it is with them just all coincidentally being bad at the same time.
I was at the Dallas game and it was unbelievable how many times the D tried to make partner to partner passes deep in their own zone with a Dallas forechecker right in the middle and lots of other safe options. You could tell, the D weren't even comfortable making the pass. They'd stall a fraction of a second and still make the pass. At least twice, the puck was an inch from being intercepted at the hash marks for an easy goal. Never mind the continuous insistence of the D to bank the puck off the boards into traffic as one of their break outs. Atom age kids know better, but this D group always seem to be panicked and pushing forward with ill advised plays.
I've referenced it a few times before, but last season when all the talk was about how beers on a train saved the season, Brian Burke was on Toronto radio throwing some water on that theory and talking about how the improvement was more related to Gulutzan simplifying his system. Time for Glen to revisit his notes from last year and simplify things.