Johnny Needs Protection

[flambers]

Originally Posted by shutout

Marchand is the dirty little sh*t causing dirty plays.

He is the need for a deterrent. He is not a deterrent.

How many times did Engelland fight somebody that slashed or took cheap shots on Gaudreau? Pretty sure Engelland was on the team the night Gaudreau had his wrist broke after 14 slashes from Suter. Please tell what Engelland did to prevent those slashes from happening?

However other teams have the same view of Matthew Tkachuk.

Marchand plays a tough physical game and will create space for his line-mates.

Being a deterrent does not necessarily mean fighting all of the time.

It a presence on the ice and Engelland has that for sure.

[Red]

Marchand has an animal playing on his team, Czara. It makes him feel invincible.

[Inglewood Jack]

Originally Posted by Enoch Root

I shake my head every time I see this argument.

Powerplays score about 20% of the time, or 1 time in 5. Full stop.

Sure, it would be great if you could somehow, magically, make your PP score 100% of the time, or even 50% of the time. But they don't. It won't happen. It's a competitive league.

PPs all run within a range of about 15% to 25%. And hoping that your PP can be some significant deterrent is just wishful thinking, if not completely foolhardy.

Hockey is a tough game and teams have to stand up for themselves physically. Come to grips with it.

fortuitous timing of an Athletic article on this subject...

How Johnny Gaudreau and the Flames can combat the increased mashing and slashing their diminutive star is taking
https://theathletic.com/614700/2018/...tar-is-taking/

a number of former players that had a size disadvantage are interviewed. Theo Fleury, Mike Rogers and Brendan Morrison chime in regarding the PP as a deterrent:

“Having a lethal power play is the No. 1 deterrent, for sure,” said Morrison. “Every team scouts the other team to death – they know each other inside and out – so you know if you’re playing a team with one of the top power plays. One of the first messages you send to your team is, ‘Guys, we have to stay out of the box.’ Then, as a player, I think twice about, ‘Man, maybe I shouldn’t finish that guy. Maybe I shouldn’t put my stick on that guy.’ So, absolutely, a power play is No. 1.”

In theory, that’s what happens – you foul No. 13, he bites you within two minutes.

In practice? The Flames’ power play, in Gaudreau’s four seasons, has been hardly fearsome – 13th, 22nd, 10th, 29th overall. Today it’s 24th.

But, potentially anyway, it can be counted on to keep the opposition honest.

“Johnny’s not going to go back after the player because there’s no use in doing that, so what’s his payback?” said Rogers. “Power-play goals. Or setting up that play. That’s when you can really rub it in to the opposition.”

Even Fleury agreed. Man-up production may be the simplest – and most savoury – reaction.

“Somebody takes a penalty on you? You’ve got to put it in the net,” he said. “That will curb cheapshots.”

[DeluxeMoustache]

^ lovely sound bites, but on the flip side, increasing PP% from a dismal 15% to a rock steady 25% is a 10 percent difference. So the deterrent of a great power play is that you score one more time out of 10. So you can get away with, what, 9 cheap shots out of 10 with no expected delta in repercussion?

[Jiri Hrdina]

Originally Posted by DeluxeMoustache

^ lovely sound bites, but on the flip side, increasing PP% from a dismal 15% to a rock steady 25% is a 10 percent difference. So the deterrent of a great power play is that you score one more time out of 10. So you can get away with, what, 9 cheap shots out of 10 with no expected delta in repercussion?

Powerplays can also turn momentum of a game. That's part of the problem with the Flames poor PP. It often shifts the momentum to the other side because they lose their flow.
At minimum, if someone takes a shot at Johnny, you need to demonstrate that your powerplay has the potential of making them pay.

[Gaskal]

Put him on a line with Bennett and tell Sam to lower the boom. And very loudly tell everyone if the refs dare putting him in the box for it, they'd better kill the damn penalty.