GDT #76: 3/30/15 | 7:00PM CST | v Canucks | FSMW/KMOX

[Portland Blues]

Has anybody seen the Suck-O-Meter lately? One more loss and we'll be in the Carrot Top range.

[theohall]

15 minutes of effort. No goal.

Everyone looked like they almost quit.

Players gotta own up when they tank for whatever reason.

Hitch's system was working. They didn't score. They quit playing it - with a horrible change - AGAIN - and they lost.

The 5-man unit being tight thing - it worked for Columbus on Saturday. It worked for Vancouver tonight. Certain coaches have figured out how to limit the Blues. Cover the points, the Blues won't score. Interestingly, the only Blues goal - from an uncovered point.

Pang said at least three times during the game how surprised he was at Vancouver D being so high in the defensive zone. It's taking away the Blues game when they refuse to work down low - like they did tonight.

[Toasted Oates]

Oshie has a bee in his bonnet concerning Hitch. He had this quote in a yahoo article about Stastny:

“He comes from a system where creativity and making plays is kind of their No. 1 goal, and here the No. 1 goal is structure and defense,” Oshie said. “We don’t have a lot of leeway, except for one or two guys, to use our creativity. He’s a creative player. That’s why it’s so fun to play with him. That’s not something we get a lot of room to do.”

http://sports.yahoo.com/news/paul-stast ... 7-nhl.html
And then tonight:
[tweet][/tweet]
Hitchcock has dealt with some grumbling here and there all year. It's interesting how vocal they've been. This is probably his last hurrah, for better or worse. At some point this squad has to have some accountability. Man up.

I would rather Tarasenko didn't play another shift until the playoffs. They will play a hell of an opponent in the first round regardless, plus they've been better on the road anyway.

Tough stretch, but let's get healthy for the playoffs. If they still suck a fat one, drop the gavel.

[Oaklandblue]

If Hitch is micromanaging the team, that really explains everything.

You have to let the team play, give them simple goals that everyone can wrap their heads around. Just because it sounds good in your head doesn't mean when you try to explain it, it doesn't come out and confuse the crap out of the team.

I think that's the problem. Simple. Concise. Effective. Hitch's approach is the problem. And the guys are frustrated.

If you sit back and compare the season stats, with exception, they make a very easy to follow trend. With Hitch, we have blown the last dozen or so games +/- before the end of the season. That can't be a coincidence. Maybe he gets more paranoid towards the end of the season and gets anal about micromanaging and it confuses/frustrates the players.

Hitch comes onboard and he HAS to explain his system in simple, easy-to-understand terms, which WORKS and IS effective. It helped get the BJs into the playoffs when he was head coach and it helped jumpstart the Note. The problem now seems like he is overexplaining and getting too cute and technical. Someone needs to have him come back down to Earth, let the players play. The team doesn't need to be micromanaged and all he's doing is frusting them, so they're saying forget it and they stop playing. These guys are smart and talented, he needs to knock it off. Let them play.

[theohall]

I kinda think Oshie is mistating things a bit. Isn't it the one or two guys who have space during a shift to be creative - whichever player(s) gets that space? That's how it worked when Hitch coached Dallas.

I get Hitch's system is about defense first. So was Scotty Bowman's. It wins championships. Columbus played a structured game all game vs the Blues on Saturday. Vancouver did the same tonight. The Blues structure failed multiple times in both games and the opponent scored, because of player mistakes.

Playing the damn system put the team where they are now. Not playing it is costing them games. Or did Oshie forget all the wins in January???

That kind of attitude is what gets a guy traded. Go be creative with the Florida Panthers. We'll take Ekblad.

FYI - anyone blaming this on Elliott, isn't watching the Blues offensive zone play at home which has not been what Hitch coaches lately, other than the occasional shift or the first 15 minutes tonight.

[theohall]

Hey OaklandBlue - nice countering view points in back-to-back posts.

Don't really have an answer, because either could be right.

[Oaklandblue]

Thanks Theohall for the compliment .

I kinda think Oshie is mistating things a bit. Isn't it the one or two guys who have space during a shift to be creative - whichever player(s) gets that space? That's how it worked when Hitch coached Dallas.

I get Hitch's system is about defense first. So was Scotty Bowman's. It wins championships. Columbus played a structured game all game vs the Blues on Saturday. Vancouver did the same tonight. The Blues structure failed multiple times in both games and the opponent scored, because of player mistakes.

Playing the damn system put the team where they are now. Not playing it is costing them games. Or did Oshie forget all the wins in January???

That kind of attitude is what gets a guy traded. Go be creative with the Florida Panthers. We'll take Ekblad.

FYI - anyone blaming this on Elliott, isn't watching the Blues offensive zone play at home which has not been what Hitch coaches lately, other than the occasional shift or the first 15 minutes tonight.

What happens when you have a team with a considerable amount of 'smart creative' players in this case? Players like Stastny, Oshie, Steen, Tarasenko, Backes, Pie, etc? These guys, when they are in a situation, get real creative, real quick. Oshie is one of three players who got a point on the board (And we could easily call this game a fluke cause Joker even got one.), so to me he earned the right to quip for this game.

Defense is great but when it comes down to it, what "kind" of team, do we have? Defensive? Sometimes. They're a physical team with solid netminding that can score. You can't have a Defensive team that can both defend and score, it takes a very special kind of team to do such a thing, built with special players. I'm not getting on Hitch's case here, but do we have the kind of team, when all is said and done, that benefits from Hitch's playbook when it matters the most? If not, then Hitch isn't the right coach, which isn't bad. It just means the team's makeup and strengths don't match what Hitch is trying to instill.

[theohall]

IMO, they have to find a balance.

In January, with the team healthy, playing Hitch's system - this team was the best in the league.

Injuries happen, players have to shift and adjust how they play with Shattenkirk out - they aren't the best in the league, but still damn good.

Shatty gets back, forwards go down, they have to shift the forward lines some and it's because of Hitch's restraints???

I'm not buying that for a dollar.

When key players get hurt, what's the best cure - playing a system everyone knows or relying on "creativity" when no one knows who the hell is going to do what?

Yes, that creativity should be available, but not at the expense of playing system first, especially when lines have to be juggled.

This team is healthy with the regular lines - by all means - let the creativity flow, because those linemates know each other. The past two games with linemates shifting - it has to be system first. Bitching about it the way Oshie did is petty considering the situation.

[Oaklandblue]

IMO, they have to find a balance.

In January, with the team healthy, playing Hitch's system - this team was the best in the league.

Injuries happen, players have to shift and adjust how they play with Shattenkirk out - they aren't the best in the league, but still damn good.

Shatty gets back, forwards go down, they have to shift the forward lines some and it's because of Hitch's restraints???

I'm not buying that for a dollar.

When key players get hurt, what's the best cure - playing a system everyone knows or relying on "creativity" when no one knows who the hell is going to do what?

Yes, that creativity should be available, but not at the expense of playing system first, especially when lines have to be juggled.

This team is healthy with the regular lines - by all means - let the creativity flow, because those linemates know each other. The past two games with linemates shifting - it has to be system first. Bitching about it the way Oshie did is petty considering the situation.

When you have a team that's as stacked as ours, losing one or two players, no matter who, shouldn't make a huge difference, but it has. Like night and day. So what changes that from a single player? Can't be the other players because they're going to continue being Pie and Backes and Ott and so forth (unless there are things outside the realm of hockey they're worried about, like relatives fighting cancer, etc.). What's left is the system.

One player should never mean the difference between victory and a skid and that's exactly what's happening to us. The team has proven they can win as they are. Maybe there needs to be stability in the planning of the playbook, maybe Hitch throws commands out fifty a second, I don't know, I'm not there, but I do know when I'm at work and I'm given orders and time and space to work with them, I pay attention to the small things. When I get my directions changed fifty times a minute, and if you work retail, you should be able to relate, you don't focus as much as you go along, you don't pay attention to the small things and you start making mistakes and get frustrated.

What I've been seeing of the team matches the last half of that.

[theohall]

One player should never mean the difference between victory and a skid and that's exactly what's happening to us. The team has proven they can win as they are. Maybe there needs to be stability in the planning of the playbook, maybe Hitch throws commands out fifty a second, I don't know, I'm not there, but I do know when I'm at work and I'm given orders and time and space to work with them, I pay attention to the small things. When I get my directions changed fifty times a minute, and if you work retail, you should be able to relate, you don't focus as much as you go along, you don't pay attention to the small things and you start making mistakes and get frustrated.

What I've been seeing of the team matches the last half of that.

Hitch doesn't do that behind the bench. He tends to talk in very short sentences during games and they don't run on. If you want to see a coach doing what you described, pull up footage of Tortorella coaching the Canucks last season.

My problem - none of that sounds like what Hitch did coaching other teams. What I're read, outside of when he struggled in Columbus, is he coaches his system first. When things change, the adjustments are simply about making sure whoever changed lines understands the responsibility on that line. That shouldn't be over-communication. Oshie is dealing with different linemates on a regular basis the past few games and could lead to information overload, because he is being asked to adjust to a different linemate darn near every game. But isn't it a coaches job to ensure his players know how to play his system if one guy on a line changes and that guy, like Jokkinen, has limitations other linemates have not had?

It's a tough call, but if my system worked and worked and worked for 2/3rds of a season, I am going to insist they keep playing the system. Especially when it's painfully evident when they stop playing it, they lose.

[glen a richter]

Win or lose in the real season, get Dan Bylsma ASAP. Imagine what he'll be able to get out of guys like Vova and Schwartz. The fact he's still available is nothing short of a miracle this team needs to take advantage of.

[JesusNEVERexisted]

Cprice, why no comment from you about the game?

[dmiles2186]

Such a frustrating game. They were just flat out boring. Why does this happen every year? This team was cruising for the better part of October to mid-March. And now we're questioning everything? Now what has got us to 99 points and in contention for the President's Trophy is now causing so many problems? It's an annual thing this time of year.

The good news, from an optimistic standpoint, is that we have 6 games to pull out of the tailspin. I know we all said that last year, but the difference is that last year, half the roster was hurt and not playing at this time.

[cprice12]

Cprice, why no comment from you about the game?

I didn't know you were so interested in what I had to say.

I had volleyball playoffs last night. Didn't get home until 9:45 or so. Watched the game on the DVR then was messing with configuring the new virtual cable and mixer in prep for the podcast tonight, then I went to bed. I was on the forum to read a few things, but didn't have time to put together a comment about the game.

My thoughts on the game are that we were sloppy. We allowed Vancouver to block far too many shots on net. We didn't effectively move the puck around near enough...and when we tried, we f'd it up.

Puck control was bad. Too many flubbed reception of passes and poor passes in general.

The Blues wanted to get 10 shots on net in the first 10 minutes of the game. They got 8, and then only got 3 more shots in the next 24 minutes or so.

Steen is irreplaceable. His absence hurts this team and it was noticed, but we were worse than we should have been without him in the lineup.

The 3rd goal against Elliott was bad. Beat him inbetween the blocker and leg pad as it rattled through. He saw the shot and should have had it. It looked like he just missed it.

I am so ready for Berglund to be gone. He's like Brewer in that he was here far too long. He is so ineffective in the offensive zone it's ridiculous. He badly misses a point blank one timer in the slot when he is all alone, and also mishandled the puck on a move to the backhand all alone in front and it goes into the corner. Not to mention numerous other broken plays because of him. Horrible. Two glorious scoring chances that he completely blew when this team really needed him to bury one...and he never even got a shot on net on either one. It is so frustrating to watch him play. He is better in the defensive zone, but for what we are paying him, he is a complete waste of a player. Zero creativity and zero offensive zone awareness. His water bottle buster the other night was beautiful, but that kind of thing is so few and far between with him. There are a few guys in this organization who could easily replace Berglund if they had gotten the playing time this year. He literally frustrates me every time he is on the ice.

Hopefully Tarasenko's injury isn't anything serious that will cause him to miss games. But it might be good for him to sit a couple games and rest. He doesn't look 100%. He is flubbing his signature move quite a bit and doesn't seem as dynamic as often...but then again, few on the team do.

That game just sucked.
I'm hoping that the players are kind of just in cruise control mode and they ramp it back up for playoffs. It's always said that you need an extra gear in the playoffs...but based on their play last night, they'll need a few extra gears to win in the playoffs. Hitch said in the Press conference that this team isn't desperate. I'm hoping it's just as simple as that.

I'm not worried. I know how good this team can be. I'm just pissed off they aren't playing up to their capabilities right now...and they are losing ground in the standings, AGAIN, with less than 10 games to go in the season...just like last year.
At this point, I'd be happy just to have home ice in the first round. Last week we were first in line for the President's trophy, or at the very least 1st in the West. That doesn't look very promising right now.

[ecbm]

Good debate. Personally, I'm with Oakland and have been saying that Hitch's system doesn't make the most of the talent, offensive talent, on this team for a couple years. The talent on this team, and they mainly play dump-and-chase. (I hate the term "200-foot game", which has been completely hollowed out of any specific meaning.) I think this squad sags late in the season because Hitch's system is one they don't really care for but tolerate for a while because it can be effective, and then when the bodies get sore and the checking gets tight late in the season, they let up. They get lazy. They play with no shape. They play fractions of games. Injuries play a role but the Blues have hardly been particularly injury-hit this season. If it's another one and done in the playoffs, let's give Bylsma a run with this core before blowing it up.

Oh, and by the way: inconsistency in a starting goalie is a real problem. In last 18 starts, 10 with sv% under .900, 10 with 3 or more allowed and in 5 of those he faced 20 shots or fewer. Elliott can be very good, but he has to find his way to being that every night.

[not_a_wings_fan]

I dont' think hitch's system is simple, honestly. I think there's some pretty complex positioning and decision making required to play it properly. I further think quality coaches have figured out exactly how to beat it and who to confuse to create problems. It happens the same way too many time.

I think hitch is a one trick pony who has all his eggs in "the system" because it worked at one point in time. What I don't see is multiple looks from this team.

I think the player frustration is that they know they are getting abused by the same things, but if they do anything to counter it they (1) give up a goal somewhere else because once a guy leaves the page the rest of the team isn't there with him and (2) get in the dog house with the coach because they didn't play the system. This drops all success at the coach's feet and all failure at the players' feet. It's a no win situation for the guys, and this is part of the problems in the room.

This team is loaded with high quality weapons that aren't be used. It's also got a number of guys who haven't earned their playing time with their play. Those two camps aren't meshing well and the result is when it's time to find another gear it isn't there.

Several years in a row, when other teams turn up the gas, this one is just gassed and fractured. That falls squarely on hitch and his staff.

The message is stale. It's stale because the results have been consistent - and not in the winning cups way. Q keeps his job and the team because they have been to the promised land several times with him at the helm. Hitch isn't getting that benefit from his players because we keep getting swept aside early.

I think a coaching change is in the works this off season with anything short of a cup. Doing something else is a failure of the front office.

[cprice12]

Good debate. Personally, I'm with Oakland and have been saying that Hitch's system doesn't make the most of the talent, offensive talent, on this team for a couple years. The talent on this team, and they mainly play dump-and-chase. (I hate the term "200-foot game", which has been completely hollowed out of any specific meaning.) I think this squad sags late in the season because Hitch's system is one they don't really care for but tolerate for a while because it can be effective, and then when the bodies get sore and the checking gets tight late in the season, they let up. They get lazy. They play with no shape. They play fractions of games. Injuries play a role but the Blues have hardly been particularly injury-hit this season. If it's another one and done in the playoffs, let's give Bylsma a run with this core before blowing it up.

Oh, and by the way: inconsistency in a starting goalie is a real problem. In last 18 starts, 10 with sv% under .900, 10 with 3 or more allowed and in 5 of those he faced 20 shots or fewer. Elliott can be very good, but he has to find his way to being that every night.

I really only had a problem with the one goal last night on Elliott...the one that went between his blocker and pad. That was a bad goal.
I thought he was real good otherwise...especially in the first period.
Elliott was hung out to dry all night long. The score could have been much worse.
I remember thinking in the first period, even while we were supposedly playing well and outshooting Vancouver, the Canucks were getting much better scoring chances.
The quality of our chances weren't great at all.
It was a team loss for sure. Pretty much everyone could share in the blame.

[rorschach]

As long as we don't draw LA, Chicago, Vancouver, Minnesota, Winnipeg, Nashville or Anaheim in the playoffs then it's smooth sailing boys. It's Calgary or bust lol.

[ViPeRx007]

Has anybody seen the Suck-O-Meter lately? One more loss and we'll be in the Carrot Top range.

The Suck-O-Meter. Those were simpler, yet still sucky times.

[ViPeRx007]

Some of these prima donna's need to start playing like they give a crap and stop blaming it all on the system. The system works fine when everyone is playing it. Yes, it's not glamorous all the time, but it wins games. We've seen it work. When they're not playing the system, like right now, and when they think they're "better than the system" (which is essentially what I took from Oshie's comments), they look like crap.

This almost feels like Oshie is jealous of guys like Tarasenko...I guess the "Olympic high" has worn off.