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It feels like yesterday that Joe Pavelski was a rookie and managed to cause fits for Detroit in the “wind down… era. Joe Thornton is retired now, “Little Joe… is in Dallas, and the way to San Jose seemed paved in defeat early in the season. Near record setting losses piled up as the team that had been a post season fixture for a long time and a thorn in Detroit’s side seemed to have fallen off badly.
But, Detroit is having its own issues. We’ve had no shortage of conversation back and forth on the goals against and defensive lapses. There are several fans who are not in love with defensive contracts and personnel. We’re starting to see a dividing of the guard. Kane has obviously been way more value than the dollar amount suggests. That’s a one off. On regular deals, I still like having debrincat, Compher is a favorite to watch, Walman was a solid pickup, but the line between performance and coaching is getting blurred.
There are coaches who can use a timeout or time between periods to make a massive adjustment in game. It feels like we don’t necessarily see on the fly coaching changes other than altered line combinations. Is it possible that the push for offense has created defensive liabilities? There’s always give and take and that’s where having a strong top goalie comes in handy. There are two trends I’m going to continue to look for. One is the attempted outlet. My least favorite pass is one that sends the puck past the front of the net to find a forward waiting to leave the zone. A fresh opponent off the bench can skate right to the slot and get a shot at intercepting and turning that clearing attempt into a chance against.
The other trend is having 4 players deep in the O zone on the attack with the opposition lifting a pass out and into the neutral zone converting into a rush. It seems to happen multiple times per game and if that’s the case, then it’s a major flaw in strategy that teams are aware of and taking preparing for. There used to be a scouting report of clearing the puck against the wall for the right side d back when Detroit had mostly left shot defensemen. It forced the player to take the puck on their back hand or go skate to stick.
Video coaching has come a long way from the days of splicing tape and having the highlights ready for post game coaching. Players watch themselves on tablets and highlight reels are ready for coaches to go through between the periods. Regardless of all the tools available the team doesn’t seem to be making adjustments on consistent issues. That is a point to where the coaching staff is in the hot seat (opinion).
This California swing is a unique opportunity for the team to reset. The stretch through January and into mid February is going to set the table for the deadline. If the team really is as hungry for the post season as they’ve indicated, there will be plenty of conversations amongst the players and coaches to try and find a way forward.