Sep 19 2008
Random Thoughts
Makeover
First and foremost I certainly hope y’all like what I have done to the place? The banner is all my creation. My first successful baby, and she isn’t half bad if do says so myself. I also changed the colors of the room to match the banner. Yes a whole new look feel and once again a new name. I seem to go through them ” I don’t know why”
Kenny Carroll
Was there any surprise here? It was all up to KC, cause who is going to tell the best goaltender in the league ” ah! sorry dude but we just can’t use you anymore” not even on my best Jim Beam night would I have ever thought that silly thought. The biggest question here is how in world do you replace a guy like John DeCaro?
Then again will they need to replace a perennial backup to spell KC when needed, or a netminder that challenges for playing time as well and is good enough to back it up? Well logic always says you should at least try to have 2 competent netminders you can feel confident to throw in there at any time. This is true but here is the kicker.
There are goaltenders that are of the mindset to always play a lot of games and can’t function in a backup roll. Consequently there are also goaltenders that just plain stink at coming off the bench cold late in the game for example or due to injury of the starting netminder. The best way to approach this situation is to find yourself a decent young netminder that knows he is there to be the veterans backup and learn all he can from someone like a Kenny Carroll.
Defense
I’m a little worried at this point, no offense to the guys that are going to fight for a job, but what has been released so far lacks a puck mover, and if we cannot move the puck out of our zone and quick our guys are get tired and beat up. What happens is we get to running around chasing the puck and then when we do finally get it we just flip the thing out to center ice which does no good, because the opponent is there to grab it sometimes forcing your players to stay put while allowing his own players to change lines.
What happens after that become very clear, you either take penalty or ice the puck hoping the goalie has to play it otherwise the the referee blows the whistle and the team that committed the icing is not allowed to change players until the puck drops in their zone. Oh! one saving grace through all this mess could be by winning most of the faceoffs and controlling the puck. That’s winning why faceoffs in your own zone is so crucial. But even if the center does win the face off, we still have get the puck to their end with good clean passes and it all starts from the backend. Will we have the manpower for that.
There are only two places in hockey, “down here” or “down there”
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