Quote:
Originally Posted by Five-hole
So Gio's comments following the loss was that it was a "puck management" failure, and that they "should have at least got that game to overtime".
I think this is conclusive proof that the team is coached to sit back on a lead -- or even a tie -- rather than pursue a win.
Maybe that works sometimes, but I think we've all seen enough times this year when sitting back has led to failure. I think it has probably contributed to the psyche of the team and why they're so fragile. They're expected to sit on 1-goal leads to win, or sit on ties to ensure a point, so they know that even one mistake will be catastrophic.
It's also likely got them gripping their sticks because it's so important to get a lead, and as a result they can't score.
I dunno, maybe I'm overestimating the importance of this comment. I've been wondering what could possibly cause this roster to be so mentally fragile, when essentially the same team hasn't been in the past. It wasn't last year, at least not to the same extent.
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That pretty much jives with what everyone's been saying. As noted earlier, our break out play is slow and deliberate. By design, it gives the other team time to get into defensive position. Gulutzan basically coaches a prevent defence as the only way to operate. Don't take chances. Don't make the long pass. Don't screw up. Inevitably, that always leads to screw ups. It would be ironic if it wasn't pretty much proven in any sport that if you aren't pushing forward, you're going backward.
And as a consequence, this team doesn't seem to create nearly as many odd man rushes. It doesn't catch the defence off balance. That prevents rebound opportunities, which are often the most dangerous shot attempts in the high danger area. We often don't have a man in front creating a screen because the opposition defence already had time to get set positionally.
Flash Walken isn't wrong that the bottom six still needs upgrades. But the bottom six is not why we're missing the playoffs. We're missing the playoffs because the system actively inhibits the generation of quality scoring opportunities.