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Before making a trade, try an in-house move |
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Before the Avalanche make any sort of trade, they should make some changes in house.
The lack of scoring from the top six, specifically the second line, they should look at changing the cause of the issue, not its effects. This time the cause is coach Joe Sacco.
Sacco's management of a few choice players has resulted in the debacle we have. One, he refuses to take Chuck Kobasew off the second line when he has only scored one goal, a fluky one at that.
He has moved Matt Duchene from line to line, expecting him to get going and to stop doing it all himself. To make matters worse, the lines he's been put with he has had to do it all by himself due to the lack of talent around there.
T.J. Galiardi is another problem. Sacco keeps saying he wants more out of Galiardi but never truly puts him in a position where he can succeed. Galiardi is not a fourth line player, he simply isn't. He is better suited to a grinding role, yes but on a second or third line. Yet Galiardi is on the fourth line or a healthy scratch night after night.
Sacco has been extraordinarily hard on players like Duchene and Galiardi but a double standard comes into play when players like Kobasew play the same way and never get moved around.
Currently the Avs are 6-4 which isn't a terrible record but Sacco has been outcoached in at least six of the games. In games against Detroit, Chicago (both of them), Calgary, Columbus and Edmonton he was just simply outcoached. Especially at home, Sacco has a hard time getting the matchups he wants and trying to get the lines he wants out there at the right time.
Sacco's teams over the three years have had three characteristics. Strong start to the season with the team tailing off toward the end of October, benching or moving players down lines to "send them a message" and the team not "starting the game on time" as Sacco starts out his press conferences after a loss.
Take away the superb year that Craig Anderson had back in 2009-10, what does Sacco's record is 36-48-8. Even with the year added, Sacco is 79-78-17. In the NHL, .500 hockey keeps a team on the outside looking in when it comes to the playoffs, usually near the bottom of the league. Let's not forget that three of the Avs' wins have come in a shootout and two of those with the team fighting back from behind.
Sacco's work ethic and commitment to team defense has been refreshing. That cannot explain the Avs' continued struggles on offense, the frustrations of young offensive player and his insistence to use players (like Kobasew) who are just not getting the job done.
Considering the weight put on this season by Greg Sherman's trade for Semyon Varlamov, it is time to make a change. Remove Joe Sacco from his coaching duties and get a coach who can foster young talent and bring back some of the offensive creativity that has been lacking.
Colorado Avalanche Blogger • 
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