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The comment that is the subject of the opening was, “if Joseph had been hit by Perron after Larkin’s injury, this is a different conversation.… It would be hard to make a case against that logic. In 2 years Joseph has hit Larkin from behind, in the neck, in a predatory manor as part of two different teams. The result is the same. Larkin stood up and retaliated the first time so Larkin was suspended. Perron retaliated against the wrong player and was suspended. Joseph faced minimal in game punishment. There has been a vein of frustration from the fan base on these situations.
In Wednesday’s loss to Winnipeg, Raymond made an attempt to stand up for Larkin but it was more the typical post play scrum. Perron seems to be the only player on the team who was willing to put himself in the league’s sights by going hard into the situation. Again, wrongly, but a disturbing trend nonetheless.
The league wisely banned bench clearings. Players admitted that if one started you had to make sure you weren’t the last player left. The “locker room accountability… was unpleasant in those situations. Those are days that are best left far behind. However, the trend of doing nothing when your teammate is injured seems far too polarized a response. Middle ground is available.
Tonight’s contest will likely see at least one hit that the teams and fans feel requires some sort of defense. On a personal note, I’m sick to death of hearing about the Wings/Avalanche brawls of the 90s. It was a completely different game, and filling the penalty box doesn’t make for a better game. However, even in the modern game there are players who will take advantage of a situation and the league seems to have no consistent answer or training for on ice officials or off ice departments. That irksome detail may lead to incidents that get out of hand with selective punishment and no real accountability.
Moving on to the game at hand. David Perron is back with the team. Several days ago I was ready to put him on his off wing at the half wall on the first power play unit. Then, Kane has started to show glimpses of that ability to back players off, assess options and make plays. So, where do you put Perron? First game back, potentially on the second unit. Second game back, unless you go with 4 forwards (hasn’t been a great idea) does anyone want to separate Debrincat and Kane from the first unit?
Beyond the special teams, it has been remarked by more than one faithful comment specialist that LaLonde’s personnel matching and deployment is leaving something to be desired. That’s where you come in. Go into the mall (if you still have one) walk past Build a Bear and into Build a Team. Take a look at the roster and put the lines together that you believe could lead to a better overall result. The system isn’t going to change quickly (if at all) so the deployment is key. My biggest change would be 4 on 4 or 3 on 3. Until he finds his legs, I’m pulling Raymond. Larkin and Compher are my centers with Debrincat and Kane in the mix along with Seider and Walman. Sprong and Perron can bring something to the forward mix with Gostisbehere and (?) as another set of defenseman.
Build the lineup and let’s see where everyone is at with the state of the team. Also be candid about “on ice responses… to teammate injuries. Scrums can put an unconscious teammate at risk, and a complete lack of response seems to just encourage future targeting. Not an easy task to address.