Practice Notes Feb 5 - First post Lindholm era practice

[Paulie Walnuts]

Originally Posted by Enoch Root

Regarding the PP...

I think the two biggest problems with the PP were/are:
1) zone entries
2) passing around too much and not generating good shots

Replacing Lindholm with Kuzmenko will do nothing for #1 (and might make it worse), but it might help significantly with #2. The only shooter right now on the main unit is Sharangovich, they need more shooters, more threats for the D to think about. Also, as mentioned earlier, Kuzmenko is good at tipping, and the Flames can use that too.

I am not expecting miracles or anything, but there is some reason to think it will be a little different, and perhaps better (since there is little room for it to be worse).

I like what Conroy had to say about Savard. He said he has been trying his hardest and giving them structure to go out and have a top PP, but these guys are not executing.

I am sure its a mix of everything that has us in the position we are, but I am pretty sure he is not telling them to just be slow and pass it around. The opened the season moving the puck with a lot of speed and it just went away.

[Enoch Root]

Originally Posted by Paulie Walnuts

I like what Conroy had to say about Savard. He said he has been trying his hardest and giving them structure to go out and have a top PP, but these guys are not executing.

I am sure its a mix of everything that has us in the position we are, but I am pretty sure he is not telling them to just be slow and pass it around. The opened the season moving the puck with a lot of speed and it just went away.

And it occasionally resurfaces, but they aren't consistent enough. I am very much in the 'blame execution' camp. But I still think the zone entries are both execution and a poor plan - they seem to skate to the strong side and try to go through the defense, instead of trying to attack the open side. I cannot imagine that this is just the guys being braindead - the zone entry issue has been there all season and looks like the exact same problem every day. If that is execution, it is EPIC failure.

[Strange Brew]

I have a feeling that "top" line is going to get rolled. They have skill but getting possession of the puck going to be a bg problem. I'm sure they will be sheltered more than any other line by a wide margin.

[Toonage]

^ not for the first week or so while on the road

[gvitaly]

I don't know if Kuzmenko is going to be able to be the puck carrier on the PP entry, because he's pretty slow out there.

Flames fans should be prepared for another Monahan/Tkachuk in terms of speed.

He's bottom 3 in the league for forwards in speed bursts over 20mph

https://twitter.com/user/status/1719750854310232531

https://twitter.com/user/status/1751639082630000863

That said, Kuzmenko has great edges, so he doesn't seem like he plays that slow.

[FlamesAddiction]

Some pretty good players on those lists.

[saillias]

So nobody on that top line is a good skater or can check. I don't know how they're ever going to get the puck. Maybe they'll want to swap Backlund or Kadri on to that line.

[SuperMatt18]

If you can think quick and can move the puck quick then you don't have to worry about skating as quick.

It's why Pavelski and Robertson can both be on the bottom of that list but be unreal as a line together.

Hopefully Kuzmenko, Huberdeau, and Sharangovich can find that chemistry to help them move the puck quickly and not have to rely on pure speed.

[gvitaly]

Originally Posted by saillias

So nobody on that top line is a good skater or can check. I don't know how they're ever going to get the puck. Maybe they'll want to swap Backlund or Kadri on to that line.

They should get Pospisil as the center. He's actually 26th in the league in that metric.

https://twitter.com/user/status/1751638131106001316

^I'm also not suggesting Kuzmenko is a bad player. The same way, I didn't think Chucky or Monahan were bad. He just plays more of an east-west game, than a north-south game.

[Paulie Walnuts]

Any reason its 20MPH?

[Enoch Root]

Obviously MacKinnon and McDavid are on the fast list, but beyond that, I'm not sure you couldn't build a better team from the slow list than from the fast one.

[Enoch Root]

Originally Posted by Paulie Walnuts

Any reason its 20MPH?

if you look at the responses below, that is asked and answered

[GullFoss]

That line up actually doesn't look all that bad to me. Excited to see if Pelletier can make an impact and work his up into the top 6.

[gvitaly]

Originally Posted by Paulie Walnuts

Any reason its 20MPH?

Here's the reason:

Originally Posted by JFresh on X

The league has three thresholds it tracks: 18, 20, 22. There is very very strong year over year repeatability of 20+ so that's the one I go with

[Strange Brew]

Originally Posted by Toonage

^ not for the first week or so while on the road

O zone starts though

[TheIronMaiden]

nm

[SuperMatt18]

Originally Posted by Strange Brew

O zone starts though

Funny part is that might be even more risk...I worry more about that line getting back on the back check than I might with actual defensive zone coverage.

[Aarongavey]

Originally Posted by Enoch Root

Obviously MacKinnon and McDavid are on the fast list, but beyond that, I'm not sure you couldn't build a better team from the slow list than from the fast one.

Slow team probably beats fast team in terms of depth. There are some great players on the slow team. Fast team after the top six is pretty thin, 7th best player probably being Necas or Tippett.

Slow team probably has a third line of Hertl, Maschessault and Vilardi. Guys like Bertuzzi, Roy and Kuzmenko probably do not make the top 14 forwards on slow team.

On fast team there is a lot of mediocre players after the top 9.

[mile]

https://twitter.com/user/status/1754629724373188822

https://twitter.com/user/status/1754633499037041135

[dammage79]

That's a happy go lucky Russian bloke. I can see why he was a fan favorite in Vancouver.