Wow, this team is (to borrow a phrase from one of the CinO boys) kicking the care out of me a lot earlier than usual.
So what now? Fire MacT? Or is this lot just not as good as people have been saying they are? Help me out here.
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We have guys playing outside their roles.
Pisani
Penner
Stortini
Pisani: he's not made to be a 3rd line center
Penner: he's not made to be a bottom plugger - he's a top 2 unit net-crashing coke machine
Stortini: he's shown that he needs to fly on an energy line (as evidenced by Glencross-Brodziak-Stortini) - on the current line he's riding shotgun for Brodziak and he's playing the Robin half of the Dynamic Fighting Duo.
We need to scratch one of Stortini or MacIntyre, or play them on different lines. Either that, or keep Pisani in the middle and move Moreau down to the 4th line so we can have more overall footspeed. Furthermore, we need to play Penner more consistently so that it takes the focus off Horpensky and Cole.
AND
We should try giving the Smid-Staios pairing more minutes so that the other guys (Souray, Mr. Lube, Grebs) don't get worn out from all the special teams work. I know they're making good money but I'm not sure if we can boast that they're made out of the same marathon stuff as the double-shifting Lecavaliers and Iginlas.
We have guys playing outside their roles.
You know, I don't know a whole lot about the ins and outs of this sport, but it seems to me that if you're made it to the NHL and are taking home a six figure paycheque, you should be able to adjust your game when you find yourself on the different side of the ice than you're used to. The fundamentals are the same no matter where you line up, so that's not much of an excuse for sucking. Cole, for example, has looked better playing on the starboard side, but things still aren't falling for him.
A lot of it is piss poor luck right now, but there's also the fact that this team just isn't good enough to make it through those dry spells.
The difference between winning and losing in the NHL is a fine line, and the boys aren't good enough to walk the better side of it enough.
It's well and good to say "you earn the bucks, you should be able to easily adjust," but these guys have been doing things a certain way for 10+ years now. That's not an easy adjustment to make, regardless of your income. Some guys just plain can't make it. Wayne Gretzky was the best, but I doubt he'd have been able to play defense no matter how much you paid him.
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