Article on Edler's Revival

[apollo]

Edler has been our best defensman all around. No question. This comes to no surprise to me.

Where are all of his haters right now? Vanished.

[HerrDrFunk]

Tortorella to replace Eakins in Edmonton? They need a shake-up!

Oh God, please let it happen. That would be comedy gold!

I'm stoked that Edler is getting recognition for his turnaround, both on CDC and elsewhere. He may never be a full on Norris candidate but there have been a couple of games this year where he definitely looked like one.

[Maniwaki Canuck]

Tortorella to replace Eakins in Edmonton? They need a shake-up!

Yeah, that's a real country club over there, alright.

[Burnsey]

Edler has been an unusual player. By that I mean, he had a few good seasons then had a bad injury which seemed to hurt him for a couple years, then a few bad seasons. It's been a rollercoaster watching him. Have to admit, I stuck with him until the last year or two when I thought enough is enough. Something has to be done. He always had the potential, nice to see the changes in the off-season have him playing closer to that potential.

Him and Tanev make a great duo!

[ice orca]

The most telling thing for me about last year, was the exit interview of Torts at the end of the season. He said that he really didn't know how to use Edler. Well it's apparent that WD does know how to use him. Add Lidster as an assistant coach and Edler has been given the recipe for success. Great to see him find his game.

As i said before once he got the 160lb turd named Torterella off his back he would come around. Edler has everything you want in a top d-man, Lidster was a blessing in disguise. Good for WD to bring Lidster with him, coach knows his business.

[SID.IS.SID.ME.IS.ME]

The only thing I'd add to the article, regarding Edler being more aggressive offensively and defensively, is the fact that Desjardins' system has given him much more support and actually puts far less direct pressure on Edler.

On the breakout, there's far more forward support than there used to be, with one forward usually hanging back a little to create an option for the Ds. Also, Tanev has been asked to be far more involved offensively, which allows Edler options and forces the opponents to cover two Ds, as opposed to one (when Edler was the only guy really pushing the play on his pairing in recent years).

Basically, Edler is supported, which means he doesn't HAVE TO be as involved, which actually allows him more freedom to make big plays when he spots opportunities.

Similarly, he's been allowed to play a lot higher in the offensive zone, due to Tanev being asked to push down, allowing Edler to delay up top and then move down toward the slot unchecked when there's an opening.

It's been great to see and it really points to a coaching staff that thought long and hard about making life easier for Edler. And we can all see how the team reaps the rewards when Edler is actually supported and allowed to play to his potential.

[King Heffy]

He was pretty awful the last couple of seasons, but it looks like he's managed to clean up his play in his own zone. His positioning is much better, and he's using his size a lot more. Way less blown coverages and turnovers. Even if the offense doesn't start coming more, he's earning his salary this season.

I blasted him for his play before this season because it was quite frankly unacceptable, but he's made the improvements that needed to be made. He deserves a lot of the credit for addressing the deficiencies in his game.