Coaching decisions

[CanucksJay]

Honestly, I know that with the way the team is right now, we have ZERO chance of winning the cup so lately, I have begun to embrace the losses because the more our playoff future is in jeopardy, the better the likelyhood of the Sedins getting moved.

All you homers can point your finger at me and question my love for the Canucks but what you need to understand is that I feel this way because I do love this team and know that this team is capable of performing much better with a better top line.

Our elite talent and effort used to win games like tonight however, it should be apparent that our system has been figured out by the better coached teams in this league, our effort level has come down and now we are just relying on natural talent to win games.

We've tried tweaking this team year after year. The only thing that hasn't been done is to get a new top line. So all you Sedin lovers out there, why would you continually do the same thing over and over again and continue to fail when we can try something new in hopes that a line change might be the missing ingredient?

Do you have that much faith in the Sedins that you would rather try a minor shakeup like trading Kesler rather than trying a new top line?

If not a minor shakeup, and not replacing the the top line, what's the best plan? Little tweaks again and hope for the best???

[CanucksJay]

Here is my biggest AV issue.

When I watch the Canucks, I know exactly where the puck will go whenever the puck is in our zone.

Guess what? The smarter coaches in the NHL now know that as well.

Yesterday we saw Phoenix d-men cheat to the boards before the Canucks even made a play.

EVERYONE knows its either going up the boards or we reverse it and go up the other boards.

We don't use the middle of the ice because they have been engrained and well coached by AV to make the "smart, safe play" and never go up the middle.

Now the other team knows that so they don't even worry. They send their forecheckers hard and then have their d-men cheat to the sides leaving the middle of the ice wide open.

If AV had ANY foresight, he would practice transition games that involve going up the middle. This way in a game like yesterday when we notice that the other team is not playing honest hockey, we could switch it up and use our speedy forewards like Kesler, Booth, Hansen, Shroeder, Raymond and expose the middle of the ice.

I'm not saying do this everytime, I'm just saying have some plays in your back pocket so that he can make this change in strategy on the fly in games like yesterday

[wallstreetamigo]

I won't bother quoting your post, I'm pretty sure we'll all know what I'm responding to.

Firstly, I think this whole bit about "playing favorites" and "guaranteeing ice time" is another CDC misconception. Coaches play the guys that they believe give them the best chance to win. Not because they think they're great guys, or because they like their hair...

The rest of your post is pretty much your opinion of what you are seeing. I disagree, for reasons already mentioned several times.

BTW: How much time would you consider sufficient to "turn things around"? Would 30 games do it?

[Aladeen]

I pray we get blown out by the Kings Saturday coaching change at this point is necessary.

[CanucksJay]

I pray you leave CDC and become a Kings fan, with all the self-hating Canuck fans, who needs blackhawk and bruins fans sticking it to us. You and Canucks Jay are pathetic. At least I respect Blackhawk and Bruins Fans they want their teams to win, you are just a sorry bunch of whiners who make good Canucks fans ashamed to say that we cheer for the same team as you.

What is the point to hockey if not to win? You think the Canuck players are hoping the get blown out so that AV finally gets fired? If you do you're off your rocker. You think it feels good for Luongo to let in 8 goals in a night. Who do you think Luongo blames for the loss in Detroit? AV or himself? You think he would have wanted to be taken out of the game? If your answer is yes it is blatantly obvious you have never played hockey before.

The worst thing that someone can do in pro sports is to lose on purpose... if I ever suspected NHL teams of doing that I would not be watching hockey, because then the whole concept is meaningless and pointless. The goal is to win to win all the battles in a game to win the game to win the chance to play in the post season to win the series to win the chance to move another step closer to win the ultimate prize of the Stanley Cup.... Do you notice something in that last sequence? the object is to WIN not to lose for your personal feelings against an indivdual this is a TEAM GAME and AV is part of the team and they can win with AV at least as well if not better than any viable alternative at this time.

[Aladeen]

You just contradicted yourself. You said the goal is to win but you don't want any changes when it's evident that we aren't going to win. (By win, I mean the Stanley cup)

So in a sense, maybe those of us that are calling for a change actually want to win while you want to be stuck in mediocrity...

[RUPERTKBD]

Playing guys who you thinkk give you the best chance to win despite them showing for long stretches that they really don't is called playing favorites. No other way to describe it.

[CanucksJay]

Whatever, it is established you have zero hockey knowledge and that you hope your team loses so you can get some sort of pathetic satisfaction that a coach you don't like gets fired. Mediocrity is missing the playoffs year after year like the leafs, like the blue jackets. Competing is making the playoffs and giving your team a chance if you don't understand that concept there is nothing anyone can do for you.

[Aladeen]

Haha... I find it super amusing when someone starts a sentence with "whatever" because that pretty much shows defeat...

Also it seems like our opinions of mediocrity differs as I view first and 2nd round defeats as mediocrity while you view bottom feeding teams like Columbus as mediocrity.

Dude, you should really try to aim higher in life. It might help.

Also you were so factual that anyone who knows hockey would know that a goalie doesn't want to get pulled even during a blow out.

Looks like Roy doesn't know hockey like you do

hahaha

[CanucksJay]

Hahaha I find it super amusing that you figure Roy has anything to do with the situation at hand here. Hahahahaha its so funny that you are probably typing out your posts from your mom's basement and that you are telling me to aim higher in life. HAHAHAHAHAHA you are the one that tries to logic out that losing somehow someway equals winning... talk about low fricken standards... anyways this is the last time I respond to you anyone who wants to see their team lose is not worth anyone's time, go find a homeless person give him 5 bucks and see if he will listen to your garbage for five minutes.

"missing the playoffs = winning" - CancksJay

[brownky]

Hahaha I find it super amusing that you figure Roy has anything to do with the situation at hand here. Hahahahaha its so funny that you are probably typing out your posts from your mom's basement and that you are telling me to aim higher in life. HAHAHAHAHAHA you are the one that tries to logic out that losing somehow someway equals winning... talk about low fricken standards... anyways this is the last time I respond to you anyone who wants to see their team lose is not worth anyone's time, go find a homeless person give him 5 bucks and see if he will listen to your garbage for five minutes.

"missing the playoffs = winning" - CancksJay

[CanucksJay]

I've come to the conclusion that your only goal on these forums is to antagonize people for their own opinion, and that your aim is, essentially, trolling. Your opinions and statements are rarely if ever backed up by fact, and you spend your argument attacking the person instead of the idea.

I realize this is out of character for me to lump onto someone, but your attitude stinks. I'm not sure of your rationale for doing so outside of "for lulz", but you display a lack of maturity that would make a ten year old boy cringe.

Oh, and to veer slightly back on topic, Fire AV, he sucks, yada yada.

[snucks]

The REF's the root of all evil, phantom calls nightly, nice to see the promotion of NHL in America has come down to this, Canadian Teams don't stand a chance south of the boarder.

[Canada Hockey Place]

Why are fans surprised by lack of team work, team effort and leadership? When the majority of the players have no clue what their roles are from 1 game to the next?

Goalie = coin toss

D pairings = mix and match

Top line = Sedins + Burrows or someone

Everyone else = lucky to have a line mate for more than a few games

Players job is to perform. Coaches job is to get all the players to work as a team.

After 6+ seasons, it's kind of hard to blame all the players and not question the guys in charge of ice time and telling them what to do.

[86Viking]

if ppl are going to continue going back and forth at eachother on a forum they should get banned, if you want to say all this useless garbage that everyone has to read, do it in a message to the person.

Dont waste every damn topic on this site, I just want to read legit hockey info/news without all the bantering and blaming

[Aladeen]

I've come to the conclusion that your only goal on these forums is to antagonize people for their own opinion, and that your aim is, essentially, trolling. Your opinions and statements are rarely if ever backed up by fact, and you spend your argument attacking the person instead of the idea.

I realize this is out of character for me to lump onto someone, but your attitude stinks. I'm not sure of your rationale for doing so outside of "for lulz", but you display a lack of maturity that would make a ten year old boy cringe.

Oh, and to veer slightly back on topic, Fire AV, he sucks, yada yada.

[Trebreh]

tittle should be changed to 'coaching and management continue to fail'

Epic fail on MG in handling the goalie situation, his 'patient' approach will bite him in the ass when the return is not as good as he thought it would be.

Looking back now, i would've accepted Luke Shenn for Luongo, that way we get rid of Luo's salary and then trade LS for JVR or whoever.

[DIBdaQUIB]

Why are fans surprised by lack of team work, team effort and leadership? When the majority of the players have no clue what their roles are from 1 game to the next?

Goalie = coin toss

D pairings = mix and match

Top line = Sedins + Burrows or someone

Everyone else = lucky to have a line mate for more than a few games

Players job is to perform. Coaches job is to get all the players to work as a team.

After 6+ seasons, it's kind of hard to blame all the players and not question the guys in charge of ice time and telling them what to do.

[Barry_Wilkins]

I maintain that what you all describe as "unmotivated" or "listless" play on the Canucks' part is in fact, the normal ebb and flow in the on-ice performance of a professional hockey team. If you look around the league, there are far more teams doing what the Canucks are doing than there are doing what the 'Hawks are doing.

[Barry_Wilkins]

I'm a true believer in that teams will play the way they practice. I consider regular season a practice for the Canucks. For those that think the Canucks will simply flip the switch come playoffs are in for a rude awakening.

There's only 2 scenarios folks.

Either our team is not as good as we thought OR simply they are not achieving their potential.

My hope is that the problem is the latter. If our problem is scenario 1, we are in a far worse position to win a cup as that would mean we need to pull of some major trades to be in contention again.

If the problem is us not playing to our potential, then the quickest and easiest fix is to switch up the coaching.

The Canucks have become WAY too predictable in the way they play and you will see that we struggle against well coached teams. We struggle against, St Louis (Hitchcock), Det (Babcock), Chicago (Quenville), Phoenix (Tippet), Kings (Sutter). All these teams come in with a game plan because we only know how to play one way. Most of us that watch every game know exactly where the puck will go when its in our zone. I find myself already fully knowing what our players will do BEFORE they make their move to get the puck out of our zone. Well guess what? So do the other teams.

For instance, tonight, I saw the Coyotes players cheat many times to the boards just waiting for the reverse or the usual chip up the boards towards the blue line. They were there ahead of the play just waiting for a nice tape to tape pass from our d-man.

Now for those that think the playoffs will be different are in complete denial. In the playoffs, it will be even tougher against a well coached team because they know our system inside out and have 7 games to execute what they practice.

In our cup run, the Nashville series REALLY stood out to me because on paper, Nashville should have been swept by us. However, they were successfully able to shut down the Sedins and it took a beast mode solo performance from Kesler to beat them. What Kesler did in that series is NOT coachable and that's why Nashville did not have an answer for Kesler. They didn't have a game plan for the unpredictable play of Kesler (where he simply beat them with skill NOT system) where as they knew EXACTLY what to expect from the Sedins.

So, to summarize, without a coaching change or an addition of a game breaker, it should be obvious that this year will be no different from any other year.