L'Orange Posted February 18, 2013 Share Posted February 18, 2013 Sadly the Canucks lost their second game in a row today. I have noticed something similar in each one of the losses. Alex Edler is one the ice and making bad plays. His passing is spot on if his teammates were the skates of the Blues. He is weak in his own zone and absent physically. He laid out one hit, and was pummelled repeatedly. He was on the ice for the tying and winning goals against the Stars, and was on for two today. I actually witnessed Luongo shove him out of his way. This is the play of the highest paid defensman on the team? Can somebody explain what Edler's strategy is? Or just put up another impotent facepalm? The defense is leaderless. Edler should be based on his salary, but he isn't even close. Of the top four he is the largest, yet is also the least physical. Bieksa leads the team with 24 hits and has found his game. You'd think making five million a year would motivate someone. Give them some consistency. This is Edler's year to prove himself or I certainly hope he'll be on the trading block. Yeah I know there are homers here who will defend Edler to the death. Blame Luongo or the Sedins rather than looking at the real issue that the "defense by committtee" idea only gets you so far and that eventually you need a leader on the blueline. Edler is a forward with an identity crisis. He can score with that cannon of a shot, but he can't clear the crease to save his life. He is this team's most glaring weakness. I've wanted him to prove me wrong, since 2010. He hasn't. I can already hear le Choir de Deutsche Baggio piping up. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Angry Goose Posted February 18, 2013 Share Posted February 18, 2013 Everybody's a comedian Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ChenWei91 Posted February 18, 2013 Share Posted February 18, 2013 Edler is playing on the right side. Something that he's not used to. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
believe_in_blue17 Posted February 18, 2013 Share Posted February 18, 2013 It may sound like an excuse but it's just a fact that Edler is playing on his off side. Being a left handed shot it's naturally easier for most to play on the left side but because we have only two right handed d-men he is the one playing on his off side. It'll take him some time to get used to it but he is definitely struggling right now. I know from experience, obviously not at the nhl level, but i'm a righty and my coach asked to play on the left side and it was just so awkward for me personally. Hopefully he gets his game going soon because when he's on he is arguably our best d-man. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gran Turismo Posted February 18, 2013 Share Posted February 18, 2013 Drop pass on the powerplay. Every. Single. Time. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NotaSmartMan Posted February 18, 2013 Share Posted February 18, 2013 Bieksa leads the team with 24 hits and has found his game. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
logic Posted February 18, 2013 Share Posted February 18, 2013 I think its just a matter of adjusting to the other side, or being moved back to his natural position. He's putting up points, but costing us goals. Hopefully he can put up points, and be solid defensively. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RunningWild Posted February 18, 2013 Share Posted February 18, 2013 Edlers being used differently this yr, and he's playing on his offside - I'd wager that both, or one, of these is to much for him right now. He's being used as the 'shut down' guy, i.e. getting match ups against top line. He's never played this type of role in Van - I don't think it's the best use for him. I think he'll be ok playing on his offside, but Hamhuis-Juice, or Juice-Garrison need to eat the shutdown mins. Despite what some people believe, Garrison is a grade A defensive defenseman (the underlying #'s support me). So is Bieksa and Hamhuis (though Hammers struggled since paired w/Edler *shocker*). Edler is not a defensive d-man, it's not his wheelhouse. He's best served how he's been used in the past .... high offensive zone starts against weak to medium competition w/ Sedin line. I don't know why AV is using him differently. IMO, it makes zero sense considering they just acquired Garrison. I put more blame on his usage (ie coach decision) vs him. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
vwnuck Posted February 18, 2013 Share Posted February 18, 2013 Sadly the Canucks lost their second game in a row today. I have noticed something similar in each one of the losses. Alex Edler is one the ice and making bad plays. His passing is spot on if his teammates were the skates of the Blues. He is weak in his own zone and absent physically. He laid out one hit, and was pummelled repeatedly. He was on the ice for the tying and winning goals against the Stars, and was on for two today. I actually witnessed Luongo shove him out of his way. This is the play of the highest paid defensman on the team? Can somebody explain what Edler's strategy is? Or just put up another impotent facelpalm? The defense is leaderless. Edler should be based on his salary, but he isn't even close. Of the top four he is the largest, yet is also the least physical. Bieksa leads the team with 24 hits and has found his game. You'd think making five million a year would motivate someone. Give them some consistency. This is Edler's year to prove himself or I certainly hope he'll be on the trading block. Yeah I know there are homers here who will defend Edler to the death. Blame Luongo or the Sedins rather than looking at the real issue that the "defense by committtee" idea only gets you so far and that eventually you need a leader on the blueline. Edler is a forward with an identity crisis. He can score with that cannon of a shot, but he can't clear the crease to save his life. He is this team's most glaring weakness. I've wanted him to prove me wrong, since 2010. He hasn't. I can already hear le Choir de Deutsche Baggio piping up. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sandro17 Posted February 18, 2013 Share Posted February 18, 2013 Edlers being used differently this yr, and he's playing on his offside - I'd wager that both, or one, of these is to much for him right now. He's being used as the 'shut down' guy, i.e. getting match ups against top line. He's never played this type of role in Van - I don't think it's the best use for him. I think he'll be ok playing on his offside, but Hamhuis-Juice, or Juice-Garrison need to eat the shutdown mins. Despite what some people believe, Garrison is a grade A defensive defenseman (the underlying #'s support me). So is Bieksa and Hamhuis (though Hammers struggled since paired w/Edler *shocker*). Edler is not a defensive d-man, it's not his wheelhouse. He's best served how he's been used in the past .... high offensive zone starts against weak to medium competition w/ Sedin line. I don't know why AV is using him differently. IMO, it makes zero sense considering they just acquired Garrison. I put more blame on his usage (ie coach decision) vs him. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DarthMelvin Posted February 18, 2013 Share Posted February 18, 2013 Edler can take a hit but Hamhuis cannot get rid of hamster Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
canuktravella Posted February 18, 2013 Share Posted February 18, 2013 any body notice that in last minute of play when edler lost his stick he played ok defense we should just put him on the ice without a stick from now on as it would be a improvement Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RunningWild Posted February 18, 2013 Share Posted February 18, 2013 I think the reason for Edler playing on his off side and him being used as a shut down D man is to improve his game and possibly turn him into a true Norris caliber D man. IMO Edler's offensive game can be considered Norris material, but his defensive game isn't at the same level yet. Apparently Edler is compromised when he pivots a certain way and playing him on his off side forces him to address the problem. We seem to be the type of team that can make these types of decisions and still get points because of our forward and defensive depth. Not to mention good goal tending. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pwnstar Posted February 18, 2013 Share Posted February 18, 2013 That would def be the only logical reason for his change in usage. They've been increasing the level of difficulty in his minutes over the last few years, the final bar would be what he's playing now I guess. I just don't think it's worth the experiment in a short season. Defensively, he's struggled. AV has Bieksa/Hammer/Tanev/Garrison who are high quality shut down guys - use what you know in a short season IMO. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sugar baby watermelon Posted February 18, 2013 Share Posted February 18, 2013 Drop pass on the powerplay. Every. Single. Time. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DownUndaCanuck Posted February 18, 2013 Share Posted February 18, 2013 Rick Bowness is an absolute idiot for putting Edler on the right side. We have no reason to have him there now - Hamhuis proved he can comfortably play on the right and Edler clearly isn't playing well there. Him being on the left side also allows him to rush up the ice and use his pass to create opportunities - left hand shot down the left wing. He's a much better passer than a shooter, so this makes sense on the offensive and defensive side of the puck. I never liked what Bowness and Brown have done to this team - it's not AV's job to coach special teams and the defence, which are our two biggest concerns this season and even spanning back to the last half of last season. Get rid of these bone-head assistant coaches and Edler will play better. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Honeydew Posted February 18, 2013 Share Posted February 18, 2013 Time for the Edler on the right side experiments end pretty soon now don't you think? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Clinch16 Posted February 18, 2013 Share Posted February 18, 2013 Move along people. There are many threads of Canuck players being trashed today so don't linger too long in this one. 2 losses in a row. Time to blow it up. Why did we wait this long? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bluesman60 Posted February 18, 2013 Share Posted February 18, 2013 Edlers being used differently this yr, and he's playing on his offside - I'd wager that both, or one, of these is to much for him right now. He's being used as the 'shut down' guy, i.e. getting match ups against top line. He's never played this type of role in Van - I don't think it's the best use for him. I think he'll be ok playing on his offside, but Hamhuis-Juice, or Juice-Garrison need to eat the shutdown mins. Despite what some people believe, Garrison is a grade A defensive defenseman (the underlying #'s support me). So is Bieksa and Hamhuis (though Hammers struggled since paired w/Edler *shocker*). Edler is not a defensive d-man, it's not his wheelhouse. He's best served how he's been used in the past .... high offensive zone starts against weak to medium competition w/ Sedin line. I don't know why AV is using him differently. IMO, it makes zero sense considering they just acquired Garrison. I put more blame on his usage (ie coach decision) vs him. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ronning4center Posted February 18, 2013 Share Posted February 18, 2013 This isnt news to me. I have always thought Edler was a good but definatly not a great D man. He's absolutely dreadful with the puck...no hockey sense what so ever...certainly has no business quarterbacking any power play in this league... He has a good shot and can throw a good hit. That, however, is as far as our expectations for this young man should be. We really noticed this in our cup run when we put the pressure on him and he folded like rice paper. I was one of the few who was very surprised and the massive amount he's being paid. The points? Well playing top minutes and first unit power play with the back to back art ross winners...ya your going to get points...not necessarily earned though. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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