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Balanced Scoring or a Superstar to Win a Cup


dpn1

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Something that has been bothering me since the draft is do we need a superstar scoring 50 to 55 goals or can we win with 2a, 2b, 3a and a 3b for lines instead of the usual lines 1,2,3 and 4th line.  (I checked my spelling this time):P

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4 minutes ago, Rush17 said:

Send the troll to the depths of trollville!

Under the bridge

Lives the troll

Who never comes up

When payed his toll

But try to pass

And you will see

The troll will eat you

Leaving only your knee

Now you know

The tail of thee

So never go trolling

Where a troll might see

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This is a rather blinders-on question, if you ask me.  The fact is, it isn't just scoring that is going to win you a cup.  It's defense.  It's goaltending.  It's physicality.  It's effort.  It's coaching.  It's depth.  It is lack of injuries, and luck.

 

So, no to both of the points.  It isn't balanced scoring OR a star(s) that will win you a cup.  You have to have all the pieces put together more than any other team.

 

So let's rephrase the question to: What is better.... balanced scoring, or a star (or two)?  And in that regard, I'd say a bunch of fairly talented players is better than a bunch of players without talent, save for one or two superstars.  With a balanced approach, as mentioned, you can't shut it down because you can't line match against balanced scoring.  Plus, with a team where the scoring is primarily done by one or two players, you are in trouble if that player(s) go down with injury.  So to answer the revised question - I believe it is always better with balanced scoring.

 

Which is good for us - considering that we may not have a single star in our system once the Sedins retire, and even now I consider them 1b/2a players, as I don't believe they have the energy to compete at an elite level for an entire 82 game season.  We have a bunch of good - perhaps excellent - 2nd to 4th line players.  We have a far better defense this season.  We have good goaltending which is likely to get even better.  We have a bigger team.  We SHOULD have an excited and hard working team.  We have depth.  Hopefully we have less injuries than last year.

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Imo it's never been about Balance or Superstar, it's about how many players/lines you have that can consistently penetrate their defense, close in and score. How many superstars do we see not scoring in the playoffs?

A guy can get 50-65pts during the season, but won't be able to penetrate and score against a defense that is tough, fighting 110% because it's the playoffs. Another guy with the same 50-65pts can score a decent amount, regardless of the defense in front of him. 80+pts guys can generally score, even in the playoffs regardless, but some 70-80 pt guys are able to score 0.5-1ppg during the playoffs (considered to be a good or great playoff performance), where as other 80 or even 100pt guys will be stuck at 0.25ppg (not so good, but still contributing). In terms of # of players who can score consistently, you should look for at least 6 scorers, (at least 1-2 of them being defenseman to spread the threat). Lose someone due to injury in the playoffs, and a team who is poised to win the cup can suddenly lose the series. And if you don't have 6 guys scoring 0.5-1ppg in the playoffs, then you'd need a couple 0.25ppg guys to make up for each one you don't have. But it's the ability to penetrate, close and score, not the actual point stats that matter.

In terms of # of lines, you traditionally wanted 2 scoring lines (because the tough opponents had a great shutdown defense pair) but defensive play has become well mapped out, and defensive systems becoming even more stifling, so you will most likely need 3 scoring lines (the 3rd can be slightly less effective though), as the opposing team will probably be able to field 3 great defenders split into shutting down two forward lines (2 great defenders can shutdown 2 forward lines too, but with 1 defenseman playing 30mins, partnering up with someone else half the time).

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1 hour ago, dpn1 said:

Something that has been bothering me since the draft is do we need a superstar scoring 50 to 55 goals or can we win with 2a, 2b, 3a and a 3b for lines instead of the usual lines 1,2,3 and 4th line.  (I checked my spelling this time):P

This has been bothering you? Really? 

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2 hours ago, dpn1 said:

Something that has been bothering me since the draft is do we need a superstar scoring 50 to 55 goals or can we win with 2a, 2b, 3a and a 3b for lines instead of the usual lines 1,2,3 and 4th line.  (I checked my spelling this time):P

While Crosby was a huge part of the cup win, scoring depth won that cup

Hagelin Bonino Kessel

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