Quote:
Originally Posted by DeluxeMoustache
^ I agree and it seems Calgary’s attempt to counter a clogged neutral zone if they choose to carry is to pick the strong side and flood it. They get closed on and nobody is giving the weak side support. But the coaches are asking for dump and chase. Which is tough when a lot of guys are not particularly fast or big. They are trying to find a simple solution to a (relatively) complex problem.
Reminds me of the time Brent said ‘we’re not the kind of team that’s going to score off the rush’
Coach is not smart enough for the challenges of his job. Upgrade time
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The coaches are not asking for dump and chase. I wish they were. Insisting on carrying the puck across the blue line, like Ryan says they are doing, plays right into the hands of teams that clog the neutral zone. They carry into the coverage, then have to make a weak pass attempt, or they do end up dumping, but not with anyone on their team moving for the puck because that wasn’t the plan.
The Flames could dump and chase successfully with their personnel. You don’t have to be that big or fast, especially against a team that has all their players up high to clog. You just need guys willing to go to the corner and have a good stick. The Flames best lines have been either Lucic-Bennett-Dube or Lucic-Backlund-Mangiapane, and they do this. So there’s 5 guys that dump and chase successfully. Tkachuk and Lindholm have shown they can, and Johnny is actually quite good at puck retrieval when he asserts himself. I also believe Robinson, Ritchie, Nordstrom, Leivo and Froese can do it.